Author: Carolann

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

Went to listen to Clara Hughes last night in Vancouver…quite an inspiring and remarkable athlete and woman.

We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. –Aristotle

Art installation ‘Key Frames’ by Groupe LAPS of France lights up during a media preview of the i Light Marina Bay sustainable light art festival in Singapore. Key Frame is comprised 20 stick-like figures that come to life in a display of light and sound.

Edgar Su/Reuters

The sun erupts with one of the largest solar flares of this solar cycle in this multi-colored NASA photo taken on Tuesday. This flare was categorized as an X5.4, making it the second largest flare since early 2007. The current increase in the number of X-class flares is part of the sun’s normal 11-year solar cycle, during which activity on the sun ramps up to solar maximum, which is expected to peak in late 2013.

NASA/SD0/AIA/Reuters

Market Closes for March 7, 2012:

North American Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
Dow  Jones	12837.33	+78.18
		+0.61%
S&P 500	1352.63	+9.27
		+0.69%
NASDAQ	2935.69	+25.37
		+0.87%
TSX	12350.16	+51.53
		+0.42%

International Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9576.06	-61.57
		-0.64%
HANG  SENG	20627.78	-178.47
		-0.86%
SENSEX	17145.52	-27.77
		-0.16%
FTSE 100	5791.41	+25.61
		+0.44%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND.  10 Year Bond	1.966	1.936
CND.   30 Year Bond	2.570	2.551
U.S.   10 Year Bond	1.9721	1.9427
U.S.   30 Year Bond	3.1193	3.0736

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.99782	1.00123
US   $	1.00219	0.99877
Euro Rate  1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian  $	1.31198	0.76221
US  $	1.31485	0.76054

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold   Fix	1685.80	1675.10
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	106.21	104.96

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Matt Walcoff

March 7 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose for the first time in four days, led by energy companies, as more bondholders joined a Greek debt swap.

Suncor Energy Inc., Canada’s biggest oil and gas producer, rose 1.4 percent as crude oil climbed after settling at a two- week low yesterday. Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s largest lender by assets, dropped 1 percent after Statistics Canada said building permits plunged 12 percent in January.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 22.75 points, or 0.2 percent, to 12,321.38 at 2:22 p.m. Toronto time after falling as much as 0.5 percent earlier, before more investors joined the Greek debt swap.

“There’s a lot of blind optimism and hope on the part of the people that are trading this market,” Danielle Park, a money manager at Venable Park Investment Counsel Inc. in Barrie, Ontario, said in a telephone interview. The firm manages at least C$1 million ($1 million) each for more than 200 clients.

“Each leg of news that comes out of the Greek deal, they have a euphoric blast.”

The S&P/TSX slumped 3.3 percent in the previous three days, led by raw-materials and energy companies. Resources stocks fell with the euro on concern not enough owners of Greek bonds would take part in a restructuring meant to avoid a national default.

The industries make up 47 percent of Canadian stocks by market value, according to Bloomberg data.

Oil and metals rose after investors with 58 percent of Greek bonds eligible for the debt swap indicated they would participate. The country has set a minimum participation level of 75 percent for the transaction, which ends tomorrow.

Suncor gained 1.4 percent to C$33.80. Talisman Energy Inc., which produces energy in North America, the North Sea and Indonesia, climbed 1.5 percent to C$13.21. TransCanada Corp., the developer of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, advanced 1.6 percent to C$43.67.

PetroBakken Energy Ltd., a western Canadian oil and gas producer, surged 7.4 percent to C$16.15. The company reported cash flow per share that surpassed analysts’ estimates, reports from Bank of Montreal and Canaccord Financial Inc. said.

Petrobank Energy & Resources Ltd., which owns a majority stake in PetroBakken, rose 6 percent to C$14.98.

Natural gas producer Paramount Resources Ltd. sank 6.3 percent to C$32.80 after saying that lower forecast natural gas prices and well-performance issues restrained the growth of its reserves.

First Quantum Minerals Ltd., Canada’s second-largest publicly traded copper producer, lost 2.7 percent to C$20.05 to extend its four-day tumble to 14 percent. The company disclosed fourth-quarter earnings that lagged behind the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 21 percent, excluding certain items. First Quantum has missed analysts’ average profit forecast for eight straight quarters.

Great Basin Gold Ltd., which mines in Nevada and South Africa, soared 8.8 percent to 87 Canadian cents after reporting drilling results. The shares closed at a 10-year low yesterday.

The value of municipal building permits filed in January fell to C$6 billion, the lowest total in four months, Statistics Canada said today. The drop was almost four times the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

Canada’s seven-largest lenders each retreated. Royal Bank decreased 1 percent to C$55.57. Bank of Nova Scotia, Canada’s third-biggest lender by assets, slipped 1 percent to C$52.44.

Laurentian Bank of Canada, the country’s seventh-largest lender, dropped 1.6 percent to C$44.31 after first-quarter earnings excluding some items missed the average estimate in a Bloomberg survey of analysts.

Technology-patent owner Wi-LAN Inc. jumped 7.4 percent to C$5.26 after increasing its quarterly dividend 20 percent to 3 Canadian cents a share. The stock declined to the lowest since December 2010 yesterday.

The shares’ surge reflected company executives’ confidence about Wi-LAN’s prospects on a conference call with analysts, including a forecast that revenue will double in five years, Dev Bhangui, an analyst at Fraser MacKenzie Ltd., said in a telephone interview.

Nordion Inc., which produces medical sterilization products and isotopes, fell 6.7 percent, the most since January 2011, to C$9.49 after reporting first-quarter earnings that trailed the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 14 percent, excluding certain items.

Propane distributor Superior Plus Corp. surged 6.2 percent to C$7.51 after Jason Granger, an analyst at BMO, raised his 12- month price estimate on the shares to C$7 from C$6. Granger cited the company’s efforts to increase profit margin.

Aecon Group Inc., a Toronto-based construction company, jumped 6 percent to C$13.05 after analysts at Toronto-Dominion Bank, Paradigm Capital Inc. and Stonecap Securities Inc. boosted their share-price estimates. Aecon reported fourth-quarter earnings on March 5 that beat the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 33 percent, excluding certain items.

US

By Rita Nazareth

March 7 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks advanced, following the biggest decline in 2012 for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, after a private report showed American companies increased hiring and more investors signed on to a Greek debt swap.

Equities extended gains on a report that the Federal Reserve is discussing a new type of bond-buying program.

Financial and industrial shares rose the most among 10 groups in the S&P 500. Bank of America Corp. and Caterpillar Inc. advanced at least 2.2 percent. Apple Inc. added 0.1 percent after introducing a new version of the iPad with a sharper screen.

The S&P 500 rose 0.7 percent to 1,352.63 at 4 p.m. New York time, after slumping 1.5 percent yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 78.18 points, or 0.6 percent, to 12,837.33. The Russell 2000 Index of small companies gained 1.1 percent to 795.95. About 6.1 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, or 9.1 percent below the three-month average.

“The market just wants to go up,” said Jack Ablin, who helps oversee $55 billion as chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank. “The ADP report was positive. The bigger participation in the Greek debt swap is encouraging. Plus, there’s a report that says that the Fed would continue to buy bonds, but they are not going to expand their balance sheet.”

Stocks rose as companies added 216,000 workers to payrolls in February, according to ADP Employer Services. The report came two days before the Labor Department’s monthly jobs data.

Consumer borrowing rose more than forecast in January. Optimism about Greece’s debt swap also helped lift stocks. Investors with 58 percent of the Greek bonds eligible for the nation’s debt swap have so far indicated they’ll participate.

Equities extended gains as the Wall Street Journal said the Fed would print new money to buy long-term mortgage or Treasury bonds, then effectively tie up that money by borrowing it back for short periods at low rates.

“The Fed ought to be saving future bullets for a situation that requires a strategic intervention,” said Philip Orlando, the New York-based chief equity strategist at Federated Investors Inc., which oversees about $370 billion. “If the Fed does something now, what happens if six months from now, Greece does default and it does throw the world into a recession? What’s the Fed going to do then?”

Before today, the S&P 500 had fallen for three straight days on concern that a rally that restored more than $3.2 trillion to U.S. equity value since October outpaced economic prospects. The benchmark gauge trades at 13.9 times reported earnings, below the average since 1954 of 16.4 times.

Financial shares, which yesterday had the biggest loss among 10 groups in the S&P 500, led the gains today. Bank of America rose 4 percent, the most in the Dow, to $8.02. JPMorgan Chase & Co. advanced 1.6 percent to $39.95.

Industrial shares had the second-biggest gain in the S&P 500. Caterpillar advanced 2.2 percent to $108.28. United Technologies Corp. climbed 1.5 percent to $82.57.

General Electric Co. increased 1.9 percent to $18.77. The world’s biggest maker of jet engines, power generation equipment, health-care imaging equipment and locomotives reiterated its forecast of earnings growth of at least 10 percent from industrial and capital units this year.

Apple rose 0.1 percent to $530.69, trimming a gain of as much as 1.4 percent. The new iPad will cost $499 to $829 and include an A5X chip that enables better graphics. It will also boast a 9.7-inch screen that has more pixels than traditional high-definition televisions and run on so-called long-term evolution, or LTE, wireless networks. The device will be available March 16, and Apple is taking orders starting today.

Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook is making the most significant upgrade yet to Apple’s tablet months before Microsoft Corp. introduces software that will run on competing devices. The new version is also aimed at helping the company fend off competition from Google Inc.’s Android operating system, as well as Amazon.com Inc., whose $199 Kindle Fire is gaining traction among budget-conscious buyers.

Microsoft gained 0.9 percent to $31.84. Google added 0.3 percent to $606.80. Amazon.com rose 1.5 percent to $183.77.

Ciena Corp. surged 4.2 percent to $14.01. The maker of network equipment for phone companies forecast fiscal second- quarter revenue that topped some analysts’ estimates. Ciena, which last month said first-quarter results would suffer from delays in recording international sales, today predicted stronger operating results in the second half of the year.

Rival JDS Uniphase Corp., the largest maker of fiber-optic testing equipment, added 2.5 percent to $12.80.

A measure of homebuilders in S&P indexes jumped 4 percent.

Lennar Corp. increased 5.6 percent to $23.62. D.R. Horton Inc. climbed 3.9 percent to $13.99.

Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. increased 2.5 percent to $2.46.

The largest homebuilder in New Jersey reported a narrower first- quarter loss as it reduced writedowns and increased sales.

Wynn Resorts Ltd. added 2.4 percent to $122.27. The hotel and casino operator asked investors to approve the removal of Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada as a director, after accusing him of making improper payments to Philippines gambling officials.

Kraft Foods Inc. fell 1.2 percent to $37.83 for the biggest decline in the Dow. The company was cut to “hold” from “buy” by Jefferies Group Inc., which said the stock has little incentive to outperform this year.

Pandora Media Inc. plunged 24 percent, the most in the Russell 1000 Index, to $10.86. The Internet radio pioneer forecast first-quarter results that missed analysts’ projections because of a seasonal lull in advertising sales.

Solar stocks declined as Canadian Solar Inc.’s loss exceeded estimates. Canadian Solar fell 13 percent to $2.85.

First Solar Inc. dropped 6.6 percent to $25.80 for the biggest decline in the S&P 500.

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Fear comes from the selfish idea

of cutting one’s self off form the universe.

-Swami Vivekananda, 1863-1902

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

A great deal of talent is lost to the world

for the want of a little courage.

-Sydney Smith, 1771-1845

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

Queensbury Securities Inc.,

St. Andrew’s Square

Suite 340A, 730 View St.,

Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

Hello All,

 

My name is Ellora, I am one of Carolann’s new assistants, and since Carolann is gone to Vancouver to see clients for the day, I will be doing the newsletter!

 

Tangents:

On this day in 1947 one of my favorite Hollywood directors was born: Rob Reiner. Reiner is known for directing such great films as This Is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me, When Harry Met Sally, and my personal favorite The Princess Bride. You can see more about Rob Reiner’s career in the link bellow, it’s Inconceivable!

 

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/rob-reiner-born

 

 

A little background on me, I’m a recent graduate of Political Science at the University of Victoria. Being that today is Super Tuesday in American politics, it would be remiss of me not to mention at least something about what is happening South of the border. In an effort to avoid being partisan I thought I would post about the brief moment of unity Washington experienced at the end of February.

 

In celebration of Black History Month, the greats of Blues music descended on the White House for “Red, White, and Blues.” The likes of B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Jeff Beck, and Mick Jagger all performed and even the President got up and sang a song.  Reporter and professor of Anthropology Paul Stoller had this to say about the event:

 

“The music created a feeling of shared fellowship that melted away social and political differences. Given the contemporary dysfunction of government in Washington, such a much-needed convergence, however temporary, was quite special.”

Hopefully the power of Blues can hang around Washington for a while as politics become more divided during the run-up to the election.

 

You can watch the entire concert at: http://www.pbs.org/inperformanceatthewhitehouse/

 

photos of the day

March 5, 2012
Flowers are thrown on Hindu devotees as they reach for a deity of Lord Krishna while celebrating Holi, the festival of color, at the Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan, India. According to legend, Vrindavan is a famous place for Holi celebrations since it is where the Hindu god Krishna played Holi with his consort Radha.

Kevin Frayer/AP

Photographers take photos during Chanel fashion house’s presentation for Women’s Fall-Winter, ready-to-wear 2013 fashion collection during Paris Fashion week.

Thibault Camus/AP

Market Closes for March 6, 2012:

North American Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
Dow  Jones	12759.15	-203.66
		-1.57%
S&P 500	1343.36	-20.97
		-1.54%
NASDAQ	2910.32	-40.16
		-1.36%
TSX	12298.63	-225.32
		-1.80%

International Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9637.63	-60.96
		-0.63%
HANG  SENG	20806.25	-459.06
		-2.16%
SENSEX	17173.29	-189.58
		-1.09%
FTSE 100	5765.80	-109.02
		-1.86%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND.  10 Year Bond	1.936	1.979
CND.   30 Year Bond	2.551	2.586
U.S.   10 Year Bond	1.9427	2.0121
U.S.   30 Year Bond	3.0736	3.1509

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	1.00123	1.00617
US   $	0.99877	0.99387
Euro Rate  1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian   $	1.31378	0.76116
US  $	1.31226	0.76205

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold   Fix	1675.10	1705.50
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	104.96	107.18

 

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Matt Walcoff

March 6 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell the most this year as the U.S. dollar gained and fuels and metals dropped on concern a second bailout of Greece won’t stop the country from defaulting or the global economy from slowing.

Suncor Energy Inc. (SU), Canada’s largest oil and gas producer, declined 4.3 percent as crude futures retreated. First Quantum Resources Ltd., the country’s second-largest publicly traded copper producer, plunged 6.2 percent as the metal lost the most in 12 weeks. Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD), the country’s second-biggest lender by assets, decreased 1.6 percent as financial companies dropped.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index (SPTSX) fell 225.32 points, or 1.8 percent, to 12,298.63 after company reports showed the investors that have committed to Greece’s debt swap represent about 20 percent of privately held Greek bonds. The country has set a 75 percent participation rate as a threshold for proceeding with the transaction, which runs through March 8.

“As the markets rallied for 10 weeks, we’ve had lots of snippets of less-than-expected numbers, and the markets have gone up in the face of it,” Jeff Burchell, a money manager at Aston Hill Financial Inc. (AHF) in Toronto, said in a telephone interview. The firm oversees about C$5.5 billion ($5.5 billion). “If you look behind it, it seems like an excuse to take some profits.”

After its biggest two-month gain to start a year since 2004, the index has decreased 3.3 percent to a seven-week low over the past three days. Raw-materials and energy companies retreated after Germany reported a decline in retail sales and China reduced its annual economic-growth goal. The S&P/TSX hadn’t slipped three days in a row since Dec. 15.

The U.S. dollar increased against 15 of 16 other major currencies today. The currency extended its advance after the European Union’s statistics office said its economy contracted 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter, confirming an earlier estimate.

The S&P/TSX Energy Index (STENRS) decreased the most since Nov. 23 as crude oil fell to a two-week low on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Suncor dropped 4.3 percent to C$33.32.Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE), Canada’s fifth-biggest company in the industry by revenue, lost 4.3 percent to C$35.84.

Crew Energy Inc. (CR), a western Canadian oil and gas producer, fell 8.3 percent to C$11.45 after recording a C$181.9 million writedown due mostly to the impact of lower natural gas prices on asset values.

Gold stocks in the S&P/TSX extended their three-day slump to 5 percent as the metal dropped to the lowest since Jan. 24. Goldcorp Inc. (G), the world’s second-largest producer of the metal, lost 1.6 percent to C$46.89. Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX), the world’s biggest company in the industry, decreased 1.4 percent to C$45.72. Colossus Minerals Inc. (CSI), which is developing a gold project in Brazil, tumbled 12 percent, the most since February 2009, to C$5.75.

Base-metals and coal producers retreated, extending a 2012 low (STDIVM). Teck Resources Ltd. (TCK/B), Canada’s largest company in the industry, fell 2.3 percent to C$35.48. Lundin Mining Corp. (LUN), which operates in Europe, slumped 6.6 percent to C$4.51.

First Quantum tumbled 6.2 percent to C$20.60 after dropping 5.4 percent yesterday. The company, which is facing a strike at its Kansanshi mine in Zambia, is to report quarterly financial results today.

Major Drilling Group International (MDI) Inc., which provides services to mining companies, sank 5.1 percent to C$17.26 after its quarterly earnings trailed the average estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey by 16 percent, excluding certain items.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., the world’s largest fertilizer producer by market value, retreated 3.2 percent to C$43.28 as corn futures declined after settling at the highest since September yesterday. China won’t need large imports of corn this year as it has ample supplies, Nie Zhenbang, the head of the country’s grain administration, told reporters in Beijing today.

The six largest S&P/TSX banks and all eight insurers fell. TD dropped 1.6 percent to C$80.55.Royal Bank of Canada (RY), its bigger domestic rival, lost 1.1 percent to C$56.15. Manulife Financial Corp. (MFC), North America’s third-largest insurer, retreated 4.1 percent to C$11.81.

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. (CP), the country’s second-largest railroad, declined 3.4 percent to C$72.25. North American railroads slipped after Consol Energy Inc., the third-largest U.S. coal producer, said it will cut output at its Buchanan mine in Virginia due to lower demand from foreign steelmakers.

 

US

By Rita Nazareth and Stephen Kirkland

March 6 (Bloomberg) — Stocks fell a third day, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index posting its worst drop of the year, and commodities slid after a report showedEurope’s economy contracted and as investors watched developments in a Greece debt-swap deal. U.S. Treasuries and the yen gained.

The S&P 500 (SPX) slid 1.5 percent, the most since Dec. 8, to 1,343.36 at 4 p.m. in New York, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 203.66 points to 12,759.15. Gold, silver and copper futures lost at least 1.9 percent. The yen gained versus all 16 major peers and 10-year Treasury note yields fell six basis points to 1.95 percent.

Europe’s economy shrank 0.3 percent last quarter, the European Union’s statistics office said, and the central bank’s balance sheet surged to arecord 3.02 trillion euros ($3.96 trillion) last week amid crisis-fighting efforts. The Greek government said it will use collective action clauses to compel bondholders to accept its debt restructuring if it receives sufficient consents from investors.

“I’m watching this market suffer,” Alan Gayle, a senior strategist at RidgeWorth Capital Management in Richmond, Virginia, which oversees about $47 billion, said in a telephone interview. “The market has more questions than answers right now. The attention is turning internationally as investors focus on economic concerns and the possibilities of success or failure of the Greek bond swap. That makes investors nervous at these relatively lofty index levels.”

Financial (S5FINL), industrial and commodity companies helped lead declines in all 10 of the main industries in the S&P 500, retreating more than 1.6 percent. Citigroup Inc. and Morgan Stanley paced losses among financial companies, falling at least 4.6 percent. Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and Alcoa Inc. (AA) retreated as the S&P GSCI gauge of commodities slid as much as 1.6 percent, with 22 of 24 materials declining.

The S&P 500 slipped for a third day after last week closing at its highest level since 2008. At the start of today’s session, the index was up 24 percent from last year’s low in October and 8.5 percent higher in 2012.

Before today, the S&P 500 hadn’t retreated at least 1 percent and the Dow hadn’t fallen 100 points or more for 45 days, the longest streaks since 2006, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

“You’ve got to believe stocks are not going straight to the skies,” Philip Orlando, chief equity market strategist at Federated Investors Inc., which oversees about $370 billion, told Bloomberg Television. “We’re not going to have a year with no pullback in the middle of the year. So it’s perfectly reasonable that we could have a moderate correction, let’s call it 5 percent.”

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone!

 

Some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next. Delicious ambiguity…

-Gilda Radner (June 28, 1946 – May 20, 1989)

Cheers,

Ellora

Dwell in possibility.

– Emily Dickinson

 

Ellora Howie

Assistant to Carolann Steinhoff

 

Queensbury Securities Inc.,

St. Andrew’s Square

Suite 340A, 730 View St.,

Victoria, B.C. V8X 3Y7

 

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

Sir Winston Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech took place on this day in 1946:

“From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic an iron curtain has been descended across the continent…”

 

And as I responded in the affirmative to my client’s request below, please have a look:

Hey Carolann,

 

Hope you’re doing well.

 

I wondered if you could include our Dancing with the Octopus video contest info in your next newsletter please?

Here is the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TVTTpWv754&list=UUGYf_zBbS3eLgyjfwEb2V8w&index=1&feature=plcp

 

Announcing Dancing with the Octopus Video Contest!

First Prize $500. Deadline March 31, 2012

 

“What would it look like if your government was 75% women?”  Show us in 2 minutes or less.

 

Dancing with the Octopus is a portal to ‘start the conversation’ about equal representation of women and men in government. We want to hear what you have to say! Tell a story, draw a picture, write a skit, just keep it under two minutes. The top 5 videos will be judged by a panel of lady politicians from four of Canada’s federal parties. All the details at dancingwiththeoctopus.com

 

photos of the day

March 5, 2012

Supporters of the United States wait for the start of their Algarve Cup group B, third round, women’s soccer match with Japan at the Algarve stadium outside Faro, southern Portugal.

Armando Franca/AP

Britain’s Prince Harry watches a parade of students at a youth rally and cultural show at the National Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas. The Prince is on a week-long tour through Central America and the Caribbean acting as an ambassador for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth as part of her Diamond Jubilee.

Suzanne Plunkett/Reute

Market Closes for March 5, 2012:

North American Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
Dow  Jones	12962.81	-14.76
		-0.11%
S&P 500	1364.33	-5.30
		-0.39%
NASDAQ	2950.48	-25.71
		-0.86%
TSX	12523.95	-119.87
		-0.95%

International Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9732.28	-44.75
		-0.46%
HANG  SENG	21265.31	-296.95
		-1.38%
SENSEX	17362.87	-274.12
		-1.55%
FTSE 100	5874.82	-36.31
		-0.61%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND.  10 Year Bond	1.979	1.961
CND.   30 Year Bond	2.586	2.579
U.S.   10 Year Bond	2.0121	1.9774
U.S.   30 Year Bond	3.1509	3.1064

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	1.00617	1.001104
US   $	0.99387	0.98908
Euro Rate  1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian   $	1.31427	0.76088
US  $	1.32238	0.75621

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1705.50	1713.30
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	107.18	106.70

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Matt Walcoff

March 5 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell for a second day, led by raw-materials and energy producers, after China cut its economic growth target and a purchasing managers’ survey showed a decline in euro-region services and factory output.

First Quantum Minerals Ltd., Canada’s second-largest publicly traded copper producer, lost 5.4 percent as the metal retreated for a second day. Silver Wheaton Corp., the country’s third-biggest precious-metals company by market value, decreased 3.1 percent after an analyst at Macquarie Group Ltd. reduced his rating on the shares. Suncor Energy Inc., Canada’s largest oil and gas producer, slipped 1.8 percent as natural gas futures dropped on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index declined 119.87 points, or 1 percent, to 12,523.95 at 4 p.m. in Toronto.

“It’s an open question how much China is going to grow for three or four years,” Todd Johnson, a money manager at BCV Asset Management in Winnipeg, Manitoba, said in a telephone interview. The firm oversees C$340 million ($342 million).

“It’s important to the commodity sector because they’re the net price-setter on lots of materials: copper, iron ore, even oil.”

The S&P/TSX lost 0.6 percent last week as oil dropped the most since Jan. 13 on easing Middle East tensions and gold slumped the most since Dec. 16 on a stronger U.S. dollar. Energy and raw-materials companies make up 48 percent of Canadian stocks by market value, according to Bloomberg data.

China reduced its annual growth target to 7.5 percent from 8 percent. The country needs to shift to a more sustainable and efficient economic model, Premier Wen Jiabao told the National People’s Congress today.

A composite index of euro-area services and manufacturing purchasing managers’ surveys dropped to 49.3 last month from 50.4 in January, London-based Markit Economics said today. The firm published an initial figure of 49.7 on Feb. 22. Readings below 50 indicate contraction.

Base-metals and coal producers in the S&P/TSX fell the most since Dec. 13. First Quantum dropped 5.4 percent to C$21.95.

Teck Resources Ltd., Canada’s largest base-metals and coal producer, sank 6 percent to C$36.20. Inmet Mining Corp., a copper and zinc producer, slumped 8.1 percent to C$60.

Among gold producers, Goldcorp Inc., the world’s second- biggest by market value, lost 1.9 percent to C$47.65 as the precious metal retreated. Barrick Gold Corp., the world’s largest company in the industry, decreased 1.1 percent to C$46.38. Semafo Inc., which mines in West Africa, fell 5.1 percent to C$6.21.

Silver Wheaton fell 3.1 percent to C$36 after Tony Lesiak, an analyst at Macquarie, cut his rating on the shares to neutral from outperform. A neutral rating means the shares will return within 5 percentage points of their benchmark over the next 12 months.

Primero Mining Corp. may reduce its reserves estimate for its San Dimas gold and silver mine in Mexico, Lesiak wrote in a note to clients. Silver Wheaton has agreed to buy the silver produced at the mine. Primero slipped 1.4 percent to C$2.76.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., the world’s largest fertilizer producer by market value, declined 3.1 percent to C$44.72 after P.J. Juvekar, an analyst at Citigroup Inc., said Citigroup’s checks of fertilizer dealers found  “significant dealer caution regarding demand post the planting season.”         Juvekar made the comment in a note to clients about CF Industries Holdings Inc.

Energy companies in the S&P/TSX retreated as natural gas futures dropped to a six-week low on forecasts for mild weather in the U.S. Suncor lost 1.8 percent to C$34.81. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., the country’s second-biggest energy company by market value, slipped 2 percent to C$35.61. Progress Energy Resources Corp., a western Canadian natural gas producer, tumbled 5.7 percent to C$10.85.

Cancer-drug developer Aeterna Zentaris Inc. soared 23 percent, the most intraday since September 2009, to C$2.13.

Investors may be speculating the company will soon release successful results from the third phase of the trial of Perifosine, Reni Benjamin, an analyst at Rodman & Renshaw LLC, said in a telephone interview.

US

By Rita Nazareth

March 5 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell, giving the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index its biggest two-day loss since January, as China cut its economic growth target and orders to American factories decreased for the first time in three months.

Commodity, technology and industrial shares dropped the most among 10 groups in the S&P 500. Alcoa Inc. and Caterpillar Inc. fell at least 2.1 percent. Apple Inc. slumped 2.2 percent, snapping a seven-day advance. Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. dropped more than 1.2 percent. International Business Machines Corp. closed above $200 on a split-adjusted basis for the first time, after rallying 9.1 percent in 2012.

The S&P 500 retreated 0.4 percent to 1,364.33 at 4 p.m. New York time, dropping 0.7 percent in two days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 14.76 points, or 0.1 percent, to 12,962.81. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.9 percent to 2,950.48. About 6.1 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, or 9 percent below the three-month average.

“It’s wise to take a little money off the table,” said David Joy, the Boston-based chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial Inc. His firm oversees $631 billion. “Some of the easy gains have already been made. We’re back to focusing on the economic fundamentals. China saying that they are targeting 7.5 percent growth raises concern of a hard landing.”

Equities joined a global slump as China pared its growth target to 7.5 percent from an 8 percent goal in place since 2005. In the U.S., data on orders to factories signaled manufacturing is cooling. Bookings fell 1 percent in January after a revised 1.4 percent gain in December that was larger than previously estimated.

A drop in Citigroup’s Economic Surprise Index for the U.S.is one of several concerns for the market in the short-term, according to Tobias Levkovich, chief U.S. equity strategist at Citigroup. The index, which measures the extent to which economic reports beat or miss forecasts, fell to 45.10 on March 2 from 83.70 on Feb. 3. The S&P 500 rose 8.5 percent this year amid better-than-estimated economic data.

“Too many data points are signaling near-term caution, and sticking to our disciplines always trumps emotions,” Levkovich wrote. Because the gauge is based on performance compared with estimates, “one does not have to predict any bad economic data in the months ahead to believe the surprise index will move lower from current extended levels,” which “may put some near- term downward pressure on stock prices.”

Companies most-tied to the economy slumped, sending the Morgan Stanley Cyclical Index down 1.3 percent. Alcoa, the biggest U.S. aluminum producer, lost 3.6 percent to $9.87.

Caterpillar, the largest construction and mining-equipment maker, slid 2.1 percent to $110.09.

The KBW Bank Index declined 1.3 percent. Bank of America slumped 2 percent to $7.97. Citigroup lost 1.2 percent to $33.68 after naming board member Michael O’Neill to be chairman to succeed Richard Parsons, who is stepping down after overseeing the company’s recovery from near-collapse in 2008.

Apple sank 2.2 percent to $533.16, sending its market capitalization below $500 billion. The stock rallied 6.3 percent in seven days as investors anticipated a sales boost from the company’s latest iPad tablet computer, due on March 7.

Zynga Inc. tumbled 4.9 percent to $13.97. The biggest developer of games for social-networking sites was cut to neutral from overweight by JPMorgan Chase & Co., meaning the shares are expected to perform in line with the stocks the analyst covers over the next six-to-twelve months.

MetroPCS Communications Inc. decreased 5.7 percent to $9.96, while Leap Wireless International Inc. retreated 7.5 percent to $9.76. Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. cut its recommendation for the shares.

CF Industries Holdings Inc. fell 5.5 percent to $177.98 after being cut to “neutral” from “buy” at Citigroup Inc. and removed from the firm’s “Top Picks Live” list.

IBM, the world’s biggest computer-services provider, rose for a third day. The shares added 0.9 percent to $200.66.

American International Group Inc. rallied 2 percent to $30.39. The insurer that received a bailout after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. is selling $6 billion of AIA Group Ltd. shares to help pay back the U.S. government.

Big Lots Inc. climbed 3.4 percent to $44.15. The discount retailer was raised to “buy” from “neutral” at Northcoast Research. The 12-month share-price estimate is $53.

Corporate profits that doubled since 2009 have left the S&P 500 cheaper than at all 34 peaks since 1989, even as options traders push the cost of protecting against losses to the highest in four years.

The S&P 500 rose 102 percent since March 2009 to an almost four-year high last week. Valuations are lower than at every 52- week peak since 1989. Traders have pushed the price of contracts that pay should the S&P 500 drop 20 percent to the most since 2007 compared with ones betting on a rally of the same size.

Rising oil prices and concern European leaders have yet to contain the credit crisis are keeping investors from paying more for profits, which are projected to reach annual records through 2013. Bears say equities aren’t cheap because the profit estimates are too optimistic. Bulls say shrinking price-earnings ratios provide a margin of safety should gains in the U.S. economy fail to match forecasts.

“Stocks have just gotten too cheap,” Paul Zemsky, the New York-based head of asset allocation for ING Investment Management, said in a telephone interview. His firm oversees $160 billion. “We were worrying about a Chinese hard landing that didn’t happen. We worried about a U.S. double dip and that didn’t happen. We worried about Europe disintegrating, that didn’t happen. The worst risks have passed.”

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

When a man begins to have a vision larger than his own truth,

when he realizes that it is much larger than it at first seemed, he begins to become conscious of his moral nature.

His perspective on life necessarily changes, and his will takes the place of his desires.

So comes about the conflict between our inferior self and our superior self,

between our desires and our will, between our greed for objects that appeal to our senses

and the purpose that comes from the bottom of our heart.

-Rabindranath Tagore, 1861-1901

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

The walls we build around us to keep sadness out

also keep out the joy.

-Jim Rohn, 1930-2009

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

Queensbury Securities Inc.,

St. Andrew’s Square

Suite 340A, 730 View St.,

Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

 

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

Birthday: Theodore Geisel, Dr. Seuss was born March 2^nd, 1904

Dr. Seuss’s eco-cautionary fable ‘The Lorax’: movie review

‘The Lorax’ is a reasonably entertaining version of Dr. Seuss’s eco-cautionary fable

By Peter Rainer, Film critic / March 2, 2012

‘The Lorax’ has a lively comic gallery of characters, including Danny DeVito as the titular tree-protector and Betty White as Grammy Norma.

Universal Pictures/HONS/AP

The Lorax – The 3-D animated feature “The Lorax” is a reasonably entertaining rendition of the 1971 Dr. Seuss eco-cautionary fable that now seems all too prescient. It’s about 13-year-old Ted (voiced by Zac Efron), who seeks out the legendary Truffula Tree far beyond the confines of his treeless, prefabricated town of Thneedville, where fresh air is sold in bottles.

Dr. Seuss: 10 favorite quotes on his birthday

Along the way a lively comic gallery emerges, including Ted’s Grammy Norma (Betty White), the orange sprite Lorax (Danny De Vito), and Thneedville’s reigning meanie Aloysius O’Hare (Rob Riggle). Director Chris Renaud and his team have fun with these dithery, frenetic characters. The film is less special when it slows down and takes a breath of fresh air. Grade: B (Rated PG for brief mild language.)

 

photos of the day

March 2, 2012

A man and a Buddhist monk ride a motor bike near U Bein bridge, the longest teak bridge in the world, in Mandalay. The bridge was built 200 years ago across the Taungthaman Lake and measures 0.75 miles in length.

Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters

A woman rows on Lake Leman on a warm winter day in St-Sulpice near Lausanne.

Denis Balibouse/Reuters

 

Market Closes for March 2, 2012:

North American Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	12977.57	-2.73
		-0.02%
S&P 500	1369.63	-4.46
		-0.32%
NASDAQ	2976.19	-12.78
		-0.43%
TSX	12643.82	-79.64
		-0.63%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9777.03	+69.66
		+0.72%
HANG SENG	21562.26	+174.30
		+0.81%
SENSEX	17636.80	+52.83
		+0.30%
FTSE 100	5911.13	-20.12
		-0.34%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond	1.961	2.006
CND. 30 Year Bond	2.579	2.614
U.S. 10 Year Bond	1.9774	2.0261
U.S. 30 Year Bond	3.1064	3.1476

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	1.001104	1.01446
US $	0.98908	0.98575
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.30514	0.76620
US $	1.31984	0.75767

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1713.30	1721.00
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	106.70	108.85

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Matt Walcoff

March 2 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell, completing a weekly retreat, as mining stocks dropped with the euro after Germany reported a decline in retail sales and oil futures slipped as Saudi Arabia denied speculation of pipeline sabotage.

Yamana Gold Inc., Canada’s third-largest gold producer by market value, lost 2.6 percent as the metal posted its biggest weekly slump since December. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., the country’s second-biggest energy producer by value, slipped

2.9 percent as crude oil finished its first weekly drop in four weeks. Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s largest lender by assets, decreased 0.7 percent after an analyst at Toronto- Dominion Bank cut his rating on the shares.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 79.64 points, or 0.6 percent, to 12,643.82, extending its weekly loss to 0.6 percent.

“The markets are showing a little bit of overbought conditions,” Philip Petursson, managing director of the Portfolio Advisory Group at Manulife Financial Corp.’s asset- management unit, said in a telephone interview from Toronto. The unit oversees about $217 billion. “The economic data that helped drive the markets higher has been fully digested in the marketplace.”

The index gained 6.4 percent this year through yesterday as gold, copper and oil futures each advanced at least 9.9 percent.

Energy and raw-materials make up 48 percent of Canadian stocks by market value, according to Bloomberg data.

The U.S. dollar completed its biggest weekly climb against the euro since Jan. 6 after Germany reported that retail sales declined 1.6 percent in January. None of the 22 economists in a Bloomberg survey had forecast a drop that large.

Gold, silver and copper retreated on the Comex in New York.

Yamana lost 2.6 percent to C$16.82. Teck Resources Ltd., Canada’s largest base-metals and coal producer, decreased 2.6 percent to C$38.52. New Gold Inc., which mines in Mexico, Australia and the U.S., slumped 5.2 percent to C$10.76 after the average fourth-quarter earnings estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey.

Oil dropped the most this year after Saudi Arabia’s oil ministry said there has been no sabotage of its oil facilities in the Qatif area. Iran’s Press TV said yesterday that an explosion had hit oil pipelines in eastern Saudi Arabia. Oil continued its retreat after The Atlantic magazine quoted U.S.

President Barack Obama as saying a pre-emptive strike on Iran might allow the country to “portray itself as a victim.”

Canadian Natural lost 2.9 percent to C$36.33. Suncor Energy Inc., the country’s biggest energy company, declined 1.1 percent to C$35.45. Calfrac Well Services Ltd. slid 7.6 percent to

C$32.48 after surging 26 percent in the previous three days.

Progress Energy Resources Corp., which produces natural gas and oil in Canada, rallied 6.7 percent to C$11.50 after Roger Serin, an analyst at TD, raised his rating on the shares to buy from hold. The company reported fourth-quarter cash flow per share 20 percent higher than Serin’s estimate.

Trinidad Drilling Ltd., an oil and gas services company, surged 5.4 percent to C$8 after Michael Mazar, an analyst at Bank of Montreal, said in a note to clients that the company has a “moderate-to-high” chance of raising its dividend when it reports quarterly financial results next week.

Royal Bank decreased 0.7 percent to C$56.40 to end its eight-day streak of gains, the longest in two years. Jason Bilodeau, an analyst at TD, reduced his rating on the stock to hold from buy. “Much of the opportunity for near-term outsized returns has been captured” after the shares soared 31 percent from Nov. 25 to yesterday, Bilodeau wrote in a note to clients.

SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., Canada’s biggest construction and engineering company, climbed 2.9 percent to C$40 after Gareth Tingling, an analyst at Macquarie Group Ltd., raised his rating on the shares to outperform from neutral. An outperform rating means the shares will return at least 5 percentage points more than their benchmark over the next year. SNC-Lavalin’s 21 percent plunge after disclosing an internal accounting probe was overdone, Tingling wrote in a note to clients.

US

By Rita Nazareth

March 2 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks retreated, trimming a weekly advance for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, amid concern that a rally that drove the benchmark gauge to the highest level since 2008 has outpaced global economic growth prospects.

Energy, industrial and financial shares had the biggest declines among 10 groups in the S&P 500. Anadarko Petroleum Corp., Cummins Inc. and Morgan Stanley slid more than 1.6 percent to pace losses among the largest companies. Big Lots Inc. fell 4 percent as sales missed estimates. Yelp Inc., the site that lets users review everything from diners to dentists, gained as much as 73 percent in its first day of trading.

The S&P 500 fell 0.3 percent to 1,369.63 at 4 p.m. New York time. It rose 0.3 percent since Feb. 24 for a third weekly gain.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 2.73 points, or less than

0.1 percent, to 12,977.57. The Russell 2000 Index lost 1.6 percent to 802.42, the lowest since Jan. 31. The gauge dropped 3 percent this week. About 6 billion shares changed hands on U.S.

exchanges, or 9.9 percent below the three-month average.

“Some people may think that the market is a bit ahead of itself after the rally in stocks,” said John Carey, a Boston- based money manager at Pioneer Investments. His firm oversees about $220 billion. “There’s concern about a potential slowdown as a result of Europe’s debt crisis. People seem to have been more relaxed about the situation in Europe, but when you look closely, you see that the underlying issues remain unresolved.”

Stocks followed a euro slump as Spain raised its budget- deficit target for 2012 and German retail sales unexpectedly declined. Treasuries gained for the first time in four days, while the S&P GSCI gauge of 24 commodities fell 1.2 percent.

Today’s drop came as the S&P 500 capped its best start to a year since 1991 on better-than-estimated economic data and expectations Europe would tame its crisis. It trades at 14.1 times reported earnings, which is the highest since August while still below the average since 1954 of 16.4 times, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Earlier this week, the Dow closed above 13,000 for the first time since 2008 and the Nasdaq Composite Index topped 3,000 for the first time since 2000.

“There’s a whole too far, too fast thing,” Rick Fier, director of equity trading at Conifer Securities LLC in New York, said in a telephone interview. His firm oversees more than

$12 billion. “We don’t think that means it’s going to have a huge pullback, but a consolidation would be a relief.”

Seven out of 10 groups in the S&P 500 declined. Anadarko Petroleum fell 3.8 percent to $82.55, pacing losses in energy shares, as oil tumbled after yesterday topping $110 a barrel.

Cummins decreased 1.8 percent to $119.46. Morgan Stanley retreated 1.7 percent to $18.87.

Big Lots slid 4 percent to $42.71 after reporting fourth- quarter sales of $1.63 billion. On average, analysts surveyed by Bloomberg estimated $1.66 billion.

Travelers Cos. lost 0.7 percent to $58.01. The only insurer in the Dow Jones Industrial Average was downgraded to “equal weight” at Morgan Stanley. That means the stock’s total return is expected to be in line with the average for its industry peers over the next 12 to 18 months. The previous rating was “overweight.”

Overstock.com Inc. slumped 11 percent to $6.11. The online discount retailer reported fourth-quarter sales of $314.1 million, trailing the average estimate of $377.5 million from two analysts in a Bloomberg survey.

Yelp climbed 64 percent to $24.58. The San Francisco-based company raised $107.3 million in the IPO, pricing the shares at

$15 each, according to a statement yesterday. The company earlier offered them for $12 to $14.

Facebook Inc. hired Deutsche Bank AG, Credit Suisse Group AG and Citigroup Inc. to work on its $5 billion initial public offering, bringing the total of banks on the deal to nine, said a person with direct knowledge of the situation.

Facebook’s new and existing banks will grant the company an additional credit line of more than $2.5 billion, said the same person, who declined to be identified as the decision isn’t public. The moves will be disclosed in a new regulatory filing in a couple of weeks, said the person.

Sara Lee Corp. added 7.1 percent to $21.83. Its international coffee company, which includes the Douwe Egberts, Senseo and Moccona brands, filed for a spinoff under the name DE International Holdings NV.

Wynn Resorts Ltd. jumped 4.3 percent to $127.27, as the stock resumed trading following an hour-and-a-half halt. The Las Vegas-based operator of its namesake and Encore casinos retracted a regulatory filing that suggested the company had completed a land concession contract on its proposed resort and casino in the Cotai area of Macau.

Shutterfly Inc. surged 17 percent to $31.36 after announcing an initial offer to buy Eastman Kodak Co.’s online- picture business for $23.8 million. Kodak, the photography pioneer that filed for bankruptcy protection in January, agreed to the so-called stalking horse bid in a court-supervised auction process, according to a statement yesterday.

Price swings in the S&P 500 have become more muted this year, making investors complacent about the outlook for stocks, according to Canadian brokerage firm Brockhouse & Cooper Inc.

There have been no daily swings of 2 percent or more in either direction this year, compared with more than 25 occurrences in the second half of 2011, when Europe’s sovereign- debt crisis triggered a drop in equities. The lower chart panel tracks the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, or VIX, known as the market’s “fear gauge.”

“Volatility tends to come with negative surprises, and it’s been quiet since December,” said Pierre Lapointe, a strategist at the Montreal-based brokerage. “But quiet periods usually don’t last. There is a risk of complacency. This is a low volatility environment and investors shouldn’t think this is the new norm.”

 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Everyone is but a manifestation of the Impersonal, the basis of all being,

and misery consists in thinking of ourselves as different from this Infinite, Impersonal Being;

and liberation consists in knowing our unity with this wonderful Impersonality.

-Swami Vivekananda, 1863-1902

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Confidence…thrives on honesty, on honor,

on the sacredness of obligations, on faithful

protection and unselfish performance.

Without them it cannot live.

-Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1882-1945

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

 

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

March 1^st, 1954: US sets off H-Bomb on Bikini Atoll

One thousand times more lethal than the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima in 1945, the most powerful thermonuclear explosion ever detonated by the United States went off at 6:45 a.m. in Pacific Proving Grounds, on Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands.  The 10.7-tonne device – code-named Operation Castle Bravo – carried a yield of 15 megatons, nearly three times what scientists had predicted.  The fireball was visible 450 kilometers away, and its mushroom cloud contaminated some 7,000 square miles of ocean.  Proving ground, indeed:  although Bikini had been evacuated, the debris sickened thousand on surroundings island and the 23-man crew of the inaptly named Lucky Dragon 5, a Japanese fishing trawler.  But the fallout also catalyzed a growing and ultimately successful movement to ban atmospheric testing. –Michael Posner, Globe & Mail, March 1, 2012.

 

I thought love was only true in fairy tales
Meant for someone else but not for me
Ah, love was out to get to me
That’s the way it seemed
Disappointment haunted all my dreams.
The Monkees, “I’m a Believer”
Davy Jones (30 December 1945 – 29 February 2012)

 

photos of the day

March 1, 2012

Luna, a black lab mix, frolics in the snow in East Derry, N.H. New Hampshire is expected to receive about a foot of snow from a winter storm.

Charles Krupa/AP

People sit in the sunshine in St James’s park in central London.

Paul Hackett/Reuters

 

Market Closes for March 1, 2012:

North American Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	12980.30	+28.23
		+0.22%
S&P 500	1374.09	+8.41
		+0.62%
NASDAQ	2988.97	+22.08
		+0.74%
TSX	12723.46	+79.45
		+0.63%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9707.37	-15.87
		-0.16%
HANG SENG	21387.96	-292.12
		-1.35%
SENSEX	17583.97	-168.71
		-0.95%
FTSE 100	5931.25	+59.74
		-+1.02%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond	2.006	1.989
CND. 30 Year Bond	2.614	2.598
U.S. 10 Year Bond	2.0261	1.9722
U.S. 30 Year Bond	3.1476	3.0808

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	1.01446	1.01048
US $	0.98575	0.98963
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.31226	0.76193
US $	1.33129	0.75115

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1721.00	1695.90
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	108.85	106.88

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Matt Walcoff

March 1 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose as Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank, the nation’s biggest lenders, paced gains among financial companies after boosting their dividends following higher-than-estimated earnings.

Royal Bank gained 2 percent, and TD rallied 1.5 percent.

Bombardier Inc., a maker of trains and airplanes, slumped 9.5 percent after missing analysts’ average sales estimate for a third straight quarter. Ithaca Energy Inc., which explores for oil and gas in the North Sea, jumped 13 percent after saying it received more interest in a possible takeover.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index advanced 79.45 points, or 0.6 percent, to 12,723.46.

“The markets were clearly surprised,” Andrew Pyle, an associate money manager on a Bank of Nova Scotia team that oversees about C$200 million ($200 million), said in a phone interview from Peterborough, Ontario. “A lot of investors thought the financials would keep money tight to the vest.”

The S&P/TSX gained 5.8 percent in January and February, its best start to a year since 2004, as U.S. unemployment dropped to the lowest in almost three years, Greece agreed to terms for a second bailout and oil prices advanced on tension between Iran and Western countries.

Royal Bank’s first-quarter earnings beat the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 9.7 percent, excluding certain items. The company raised its quarterly dividend 5.6 percent. TD, its largest domestic rival, surpassed forecasts excluding certain items by 5.1 percent and increased its payout

5.9 percent.

The S&P/TSX Financials Index rallied to the highest level since July. Royal Bank climbed 2 percent to C$56.80, extending its streak of gains, the longest in two years, to eight days. TD rose 1.5 percent to C$82 after closing at the highest since July yesterday. Manulife Financial Corp., North America’s third- largest insurer, gained 2.1 percent to C$12.64.

Raw-materials producers advanced as gold rebounded from yesterday’s 4.3 percent plunge and copper climbed on the Comex in New York.

Goldcorp Inc., the world’s second-largest gold producer by market value, rose 2 percent to C$48.91. First Quantum Minerals Ltd., Canada’s second-biggest publicly traded copper producer, gained 3.5 percent to C$23.43 after China reported manufacturing growth accelerated last month. Ivanhoe Mines Ltd., Rio Tinto Group’s majority-owned partner in Mongolia’s Oyu Tolgoi project, rallied 5.5 percent to C$18.11.

China Gold International Resources Corp. tumbled 8.1 percent to C$3.98 as the metal fell 3.9 percent in Shanghai.

Bombardier sank 9.5 percent, the most since March 2009, to

C$4.30 after reporting fourth-quarter sales that trailed the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 9 percent. The company forecast a fifth straight annual decline in aircraft deliveries this year.

Timothy James, an analyst at TD, cut his rating on the shares to hold from buy. Cameron Doerksen of National Bank of Canada reduced his rating on Bombardier to sector perform from outperform, meaning the shares will perform in line with the industry over the next 12 months.

Oil and gas producers advanced as crude oil touched $110 a barrel in electronic trading in New York.

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., the country’s second- largest energy company by market value, increased 1.9 percent to C$37.41. Cenovus Energy Inc., Canada’s fifth-biggest company in the industry by revenue, climbed 1.3 percent to C$38.95.

Precision Drilling Corp., the country’s largest drilling company, rallied 5.2 percent to C$12.60.

Ithaca Energy soared 13 percent to C$3.20, the highest close since January 2008, after saying it has “received unsolicited interest from a number of third parties.” The company said Jan. 23 it had received a takeover proposal.

Research In Motion Ltd. fell 4.9 percent to C$13.35 after Peter Misek, an analyst at Jefferies Group Inc., said the BlackBerry maker is likely to estimate quarterly earnings below the average analyst forecast. Misek cut his 12-month price estimate on RIM’s U.S.-traded shares to $12 from $15.

Calfrac Well Services Ltd. advanced 8.7 percent to C$35.15 after Moody’s Investors Service raised its credit rating to Ba3 from B1. Ratings in the Ba category have “substantial” credit risk rather than “high” risk as in the B category. Terry Marshall, an analyst at Moody’s, cited higher spending by oil and gas producers as a reason for the upgrade in a note.

Calfrac shares have jumped 26 percent since Feb. 27 for the biggest three-day gain since March 2004.

Yoga-wear retailer Lululemon Athletica Inc. increased 5.4 percent to a record C$69.86 after Jim Duffy, an analyst at Stifel Financial Corp., boosted his 12-month price forecast on its U.S. shares to $77 from $70. Stifel’s checks have found “positive consumer response to new styles and color palettes”

as well as changes to Lululemon’s website, Duffy wrote in a note to clients. The company’s market value surpassed C$10 billion.

US

By Rita Nazareth

March 1 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks advanced, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to the highest level since 2008, amid a rally in financial shares and after government data showed that jobless claims declined to a four-year low.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp. climbed at least 1.8 percent as Spanish and French borrowing costs fell.

ConocoPhillips added 2.2 percent, pacing gains in energy producers, as crude oil traded near $110 a barrel. Gap Inc., the largest U.S. apparel chain, increased 7.2 percent as same-store sales exceeded estimates. General Motors Co. jumped 1.7 percent after the automaker reported a surprise U.S. sales gain.

The S&P 500 added 0.6 percent to 1,374.09 at 4 p.m. New York time, after a three-month gain. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 28.23 points, or 0.2 percent, to 12,980.30.

“We’re not lighting the world on fire, but we’re seeing improvement in the economy,” said Mark Masterson, managing director and partner at HighTower’s Masterson, Emma & Associates in Naples, Florida. Hightower has over $25 billion in assets.

“The risk from the European situation has been reduced. I don’t know that it’s been eliminated. Best I can say at this point is that it appears to have been postponed.”

Equities rose as the number of Americans filing first-time claims for jobless benefits fell to a level matching a four-year low, more evidence the labor market is healing. Gains in Europe also helped lift the S&P 500 after Spain and France sold 12.5 billion euros ($16.7 billion) of bonds as the European Central Bank’s long-term refinancing operation of lending to banks helped spur demand.

Financial shares had the biggest gain in the S&P 500 among

10 industries, adding 1.2 percent. JPMorgan increased 2.9 percent, the most in the Dow, to $40.37. Bank of America had the second-largest advance in the 30-stock gauge, climbing 1.9 percent to $8.12.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. jumped 5.2 percent to $121.13. The fifth-biggest U.S. bank by assets agreed to buy Ariel Holdings Ltd.’s Bermuda-based insurance and reinsurance businesses to expand property and casualty coverage.

Benchmark gauges briefly pared gains as oil jumped after a report of an explosion on a pipeline in Saudi Arabia. A government official said late today there was no sabotage to its oil facilities in the Qatif region. Energy shares in the S&P 500 added 0.9 percent as a group. ConocoPhillips gained 2.2 percent to $78.22.

“U.S. stocks and economic data appear to be moving at least two steps forward for every step back which, we believe, leads to a strengthening trend for both,” said Kully Samra, who manages U.K.-based clients for Charles Schwab Corp., which has

$1.6 trillion of assets globally. “Rising oil prices are a risk to global growth, but we’re optimistic the improved environment will keep the recovery in motion.”

Gap surged 7.2 percent, the most in the S&P 500, to $25.05.

Sales climbed 4 percent, beating the average projection for a

1.4 percent drop from analysts surveyed by Retail Metrics Inc.

Unseasonably warm weather boosted purchases of spring merchandise.

Car companies had the biggest gain in the S&P 500 among 24 industries, rallying 2.1 percent. GM added 1.7 percent to $26.47 as deliveries rose 1.1 percent in February to 209,306 cars and light trucks, beating analysts’ estimates for a 4.8 percent drop. Ford Motor Co. climbed 2.3 percent to $12.66 after sales also topped analysts’ estimates.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. climbed 2.2 percent to $7.51.

The second-largest maker of processors for personal computers said it will pay $334 million to buy SeaMicro Inc., a chip designer with expertise in servers, adding technology that can help it compete with Intel Corp. in the market for data centers.

Monster Worldwide Inc. surged 15 percent to $8.01. The world’s largest online-recruiting company said it’s considering “all other strategic alternatives” to boost shareholder value.

Apple Inc. rose 0.4 percent to a record $544.47, gaining for a sixth day. Now that its market value has exceeded $500 billion, the biggest challenge for the maker of iPads may be staying there. It’s the sixth U.S. company crossing the threshold, data compiled by S&P show. The others are Microsoft Corp., General Electric Co., Cisco Systems Inc., Intel Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp., in chronological order.

All five companies were below $500 billion a year after reaching that pinnacle, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

GE was the only one to surpass that value afterward.

Today’s advance extended this year’s rally in the S&P 500 to 9.3 percent. Yet the index trades at about 14.2 times reported earnings, compared with the average since 1954 of 16.4 times, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The S&P 500 has the potential to reach 1,700 before the end of the year should the economy surprise investors the same way falling bond rates did in 1995, Birinyi Associates Inc. said.

An expansion that beat forecasts would help stocks rally after economists tempered their estimate for growth in 2012 to

2.2 percent from 2.3 percent earlier in the year, according to Laszlo Birinyi, who was among the first to suggest buying stocks in 2009. The potential for surprise is similar to 1995, when the yield on the 30-year U.S. Treasuries fell 1.93 percentage points, even as Wall Street predicted they would gain.

“In 1995, the consensus trade was higher yields, today it is tepid economic growth and the market is suggesting — perhaps insisting — an alternative to that consensus,” Birinyi wrote.

“We would encourage a more aggressive posture.”

UBS AG raised its forecasts for the S&P 500 and its companies earnings amid a “dramatic” improvement in the economy. Jonathan Golub’s year-end forecast for the benchmark gauge rose to 1,475 from 1,325. He estimates earnings-per-share of $103 this year and $112 in 2013. The previous forecasts were

$99 and $111, respectively.

A measure of homebuilders in S&P indexes lost 0.9 percent.

PulteGroup Inc. slumped 2.6 percent to $8.59. KB Home fell 1.3 percent to $11.27.

Sotheby’s tumbled 9.1 percent to $35.75. The publicly traded auctioneer of fine arts and collectibles said fourth- quarter profit fell 26 percent as sales slid.

Smaller companies trailed larger stocks in the U.S. in February, a sign that the S&P 500’s longest monthly rally in a year may be losing momentum, according to Bespoke Investment Group LLC.

The Russell 2000 Index, which tracks companies with an average market value of $738 million, added 2.3 percent last month, compared with a 4.1 percent gain in the S&P 500, whose members average $25.9 billion in value. The underperformance accelerated in the second half of the month, with the Russell

2000 rising on two of the last nine days and the S&P 500 gaining during seven.

“Small caps are cyclical in nature, and typically perform better during market rallies,” Justin Walters, Bespoke’s co- founder, wrote in a note yesterday. “They haven’t been rallying recently, which should be cause of concern for market bulls.”

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

First of all, accept yourself.

When you do not accept yourself and imagine yourself to be someone different,

a conflict arises between what you believe you are and what you really are.

-Swami Prajnanpad, 1891-1974

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

We must dare, and dare again, and go on daring.

-Georges Jacques Danton, 1759-1794

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

 

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

On this day…

February 29^th, 1984: Trudeau resigns as Prime Minister, after a walk in the snow.  Speaking of snow, one  of my clients who dropped by today with his RSP contribution told us there was major snow on the Malahat this morning as he was driving into town.  I was speaking with other clients this afternoon who are in Arizona where they have a second residence,  and they said they haven’t had rain for two months, sunshine every day, warm – and they also said that there are still incredible real estate bargains, especially at the high end of the market.  There is also a non-stop WestJet flight now.  🙂

Leap year: why we have a need for the occasional Feb. 29

The leap year is a testament to the tough time that humans have trying to organize 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, and 16 seconds into a year.

By Pete Spotts,  February 29, 2012

If you were born on Feb. 29, 1988, you can claim with a wink that you’re only 6 years old. And if you’re a single woman with your eye on a special guy, this is the day to pop the question. If he refuses, by tradition he owes you.

The leap year is a testament to the tough time that humans have trying to squeeze the 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, and 16 seconds of a year – as measured by one trip around the sun – into a yearly calendar containing 365 days.

RECOMMENDED: Leap year – this day in the history of Feb. 29

Knowing when to tack an extra day onto a year isn’t as simple as “add a day to February every four years.” That would be too easy.

For those who have trouble remembering the spelling rule, “I before E, except after C,” and its caveats, try this: If the year is evenly divisible by four, add a day to February – unless you can divide the year evenly by 100, then no leap day, unless the year is evenly divisible by 400, then you add a leap day.

It could be worse. If Julius Caesar hadn’t reformed the old Roman calendar (and no one else had in the meantime), we might still be adding a month to the calendar every two or three years. The Roman calendar was based on a lunar month, which averages 29.5 days. If you were big on festivals and a slave to your calendar, your spring planting festival could end up in the dog days of summer unless you brought the calendar back in sync with solar time.

Around 46 BC, Caesar stepped in and, one can imagine, said, “Ist es ridiculum!” He moved the calendar onto a solar year.

But even Julius didn’t get it quite right.

The Julian calendar is based on a year that is 365 days, 6 hours long. So you could add one day to February every four years from now until Brutus stopped by and be happy. However, if you did that, the equinoxes, as marked on the calendar, arrived earlier every year. The spring equinox, always a favorite among festival planners, arrived on March 25, when Caesar had completed his conquest of the calendar. By the 1500s, the spring equinox was cropping up on March 10 or 11.

Keep this up long enough, and Easter Sunday as marked on a calendar eventually would take place in the dead of winter. Easter Sunday is the first Sunday after the first full moon following the vernal equinox, keeping it close to the Jewish observance of Passover.  In the late 1500s, a continued shift of Easter and other Christian holy days did not sit well with the Vatican.

The result: The Gregorian calendar, which has since become the international standard as a general-purpose calendar for scheduling business meetings, mortgage payments, and Little League Games.

Still, variations on the lunar calendar – and the periodic additions of leap months – remain in place for religious and cultural purposes, largely within cultures that trace their roots to Asia and the Middle East.

But back to marriage. Remember we mentioned marriage? According to an Irish tradition, back in the day, St. Bridget cut a deal with St. Patrick allowing women to propose marriage to men on a leap day. In some areas that adopted the tradition, men were penalized if they refused the proposal. Small consolation, perhaps, but a “no” would leave the forlorn miss in line for a new gown or several pairs of new gloves.

These days, international time is determined by the vibrations of atoms in incredibly accurate atomic clocks, rather than by Earth’s rotation. This has added another kind of leap to the time-keeping lexicon: the leap second.

Keepers of atomic clocks periodically add or subtract one or two seconds a year to keep the clocks synced with a 24-hour day as measured by Earth’s rotation – which on average is gradually slowing. The first leap seconds were added in June and December 1972. The next leap second – the 25th since 1972 – is slated for this coming June.

Earlier this year, international time gurus meeting in Geneva considered a proposal to abolish the leap second. A final decision is expected in 2015.

photos of the day

February 29, 2012

A woman performs morning exercise with fans at the Ditan park in Beijing, China.

Andy Wong/AP

Feliciano Lopez of Spain reacts after he lost a point against Roger Federer of Switzerland during the Emirates Dubai ATP Tennis Championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Hassan Ammar/AP

 

Market Closes for February 29, 2012:

North American Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
Dow  Jones	12952.07	-53.05
		-0.41%
S&P 500	1365.68	-6.50
		-0.47%
NASDAQ	2966.89	-19.87
		-0.67%
TSX	12644.01	-96.46
		-0.76%

International Markets

Market  Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9723.24	+0.72
		+0.01%
HANG  SENG	21680.08	+111.35
		+0.52%
SENSEX	17752.68	+21.56
		+0.12%
FTSE 100	5871.51	-56.40
		-0.95%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND.  10 Year Bond	1.989	1.975
CND.   30 Year Bond	2.598	2.594
U.S.   10 Year Bond	1.9722	1.9324
U.S.   30 Year Bond	3.0808	3.0641

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian  $	1.01048	1.0001
US   $	0.98963	0.99563
Euro Rate  1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian   $	1.31888	0.75822
US  $	1.33270	0.75035

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1695.90	1786.70
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	106.88	106.64

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Matt Walcoff

Feb. 29 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell, paring a second-straight monthly gain, as gold-mining companies dropped after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke damped speculation of more quantitative easing.

Barrick Gold Corp., the world’s largest gold producer, declined 3.6 percent as the metal retreated after settling at a three-month high yesterday. Suncor Energy Inc., Canada’s biggest oil and gas producer, lost 1 percent after the U.S. reported an increase in crude inventories. Progressive Waste Solutions Ltd., the nation’s biggest waste-management company, slumped 5.8 percent after forecasting 2012 profit excluding certain items below analysts’ estimates.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index slipped 94.43 points, or 0.7 percent, to 12,646.04 at 1:59 p.m. Toronto time, narrowing the monthly advance to 1.5 percent. Before Bernanke’s comments today, Toronto stocks were up as much as 0.4 percent on the day.

“It looks like QE3 is off the table,” Greg Taylor, a money manager at Aurion Capital Management in Toronto, said in a telephone interview, referring to a third round of Fed asset purchases. The firm oversees about C$5.5 billion ($5.6 billion).

“There was some segment of the investor population that thought it was on. The golds are getting crushed.”

The index had gained 2.3 percent this month through yesterday as the U.S. reported improved economic data and Greek and European officials reached a deal on a second bailout for the country.

The S&P/TSX Materials Index fell the most this year after Bernanke gave no sign that the Fed is considering a new round of asset purchases in testimony to a congressional committee. Gold tumbled as much as 4.7 percent, most intraday since Dec. 14.

Barrick dropped 3.6 percent to C$47.50. Goldcorp Inc., the world’s second-largest gold producer by market value, declined 4 percent to C$47.80. Silver Wheaton Corp., Canada’s third-largest precious-metals producer, lost 5.1 percent to C$37.68 as silver sank the most intraday since September.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., the world’s biggest fertilizer producer by market value, retreated 1.6 percent to C$46.12 after Andrew Benson, an analyst at Citigroup Inc., said potash prices will be weaker than those of other nutrients in the first half of the year.

“There is ample supply, key producers had to cut production due to lack of demand and the buyer’s market seems more pronounced than in other fertilizers,” Benson wrote in a note to clients about Kassel, Germany-based producer K+S AG today.

The S&P/TSX Energy Index fell with crude oil after the U.S. Energy Department said supplies of the fuel increased 4.16 million barrels last week. None of the 12 analysts in a Bloomberg survey had forecast a gain that large. Suncor dropped 1 percent to C$35.93.

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., the country’s second- biggest energy company by market value, declined 1.6 percent to C$36.89 after Paul Sankey, an analyst at Deutsche Bank AG, reduced his rating on the stock to hold from buy. Sankey cited a possible decline in world oil demand in a note to clients.

Enbridge Inc., Canada’s largest pipeline company, decreased 1.6 percent to C$38.07 after Theodore Durbin, an analyst at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., cut his rating on the shares to neutral from buy. A neutral rating means the analyst recommends neither buying nor selling the shares.

Petrominerales Ltd., which produces oil and gold in Colombia, advanced 5.4 percent to C$18.67 after tumbling a record 25 percent in the previous two days. The company reported a 14 percent drop in energy reserves Feb. 27.

Progressive Waste Solutions plunged 5.8 percent to C$20.30 after forecasting 2012 earnings of $1.13 a share to $1.17 a share, excluding certain items. Analysts had estimated profit of $1.19 a share, according to the average in a Bloomberg survey.

The shares sank as much as 11 percent, the most intraday since November 2008, earlier today.     aleant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., Canada’s biggest drug maker, rose 3.1 percent to C$52.35 to extend its three-day surge to 9 percent. The company disclosed fourth- quarter earnings that beat all 17 analyst estimates in a Bloomberg survey Feb. 27.

Calfrac Well Services Ltd. rallied 7.2 percent to C$32.57 after jumping 9.4 percent yesterday. The company reported fourth-quarter earnings yesterday that beat the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 19 percent, excluding certain items.

Lara King, an analyst at Stifel Financial Corp., raised her 12-month share-price estimate to C$62 from C$56 today.

“We are calling for strong demand for all of Calfrac’s services from rejuvenated oil plays in 2012 and 2013,” she wrote in a note to clients.

Cogeco Cable Inc., the Montreal-based cable-television provider, gained 5.1 percent to C$49.80 after selling its Portuguese unit to Altice, a Luxembourg-based owner of communications companies, for 45 million euros ($60 million).

Cogeco Cable wrote off its investment in the unit last year after buying it for 464.9 million euros in 2006.

Cogeco Cable soared as much as 5.6 percent, the most intraday in two years, earlier today.

US

By Rita Nazareth

Feb. 29 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell, trimming the longest monthly rally in a year for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke gave no indication of further measures to stimulate the economy.

Commodity shares had the biggest decline in the S&P 500 among 10 groups as gold tumbled the most since December. Newmont Mining Corp., the largest U.S. gold producer, slumped 4.2 percent. First Solar Inc., the world’s largest maker of thin- film solar panels, retreated 11 percent after reporting an unexpected loss. Apple Inc. topped $500 billion in market capitalization for the first time, rising 1.3 percent.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5 percent to 1,365.68 at 4 p.m. New York time, retreating from an almost four-year high. It still rose 4.1 percent in February, capping a third straight month of gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 53.05 points, or 0.4 percent, to 12,952.07. The Nasdaq Composite Index topped 3,000 for the first time since 2000 before falling 0.7 percent to 2,966.89. The Russell 2000 Index slid 1.6 percent to 810.94.

“We have a bit of investor nosebleed,” said Bruce McCain, who helps oversee more than $20 billion as chief investment strategist at the private-banking unit of KeyCorp in Cleveland.

“There are still things to worry about. With the absence of more stimulus, that would lead us to question: what’s there to move us out of some of that? In addition, we’ve had a big run-up in stocks. No trees grow to the sky.”

The S&P 500 has risen 8.6 percent this year on better-than- estimated economic data. Measures of technology and financial shares had the biggest gains among 10 groups in 2012, adding at least 13 percent. The Dow, which yesterday topped 13,000, capped its fifth straight month of gains.

Stocks fell as Bernanke also said in congressional testimony that the job market remains “far from normal” and rising oil prices may cause inflation to grow temporarily.

Earlier today, stocks gained as data showed the U.S. economy expanded more than forecast and business activity accelerated.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re a bull or a bear, you have to acknowledge that the economy is growing,” Ethan Anderson, senior portfolio manager for Rehmann Financial in Grand Rapids, Michigan, said in a telephone interview. His firm manages $1.5 billion. “Yet the market is like a roller-coaster. People want to ride it, but you got to give them a chance to get off. Once that happens, it can continue to move higher.”

Commodity shares in the S&P 500 fell 1.7 percent as a group. Newmont Mining slid 4.2 percent to $59.43. Alcoa Inc. declined 1.9 percent to $10.17.

First Solar tumbled 11 percent, the biggest decline in the S&P 500, to $32.30. The company also reduced its 2012 revenue forecast to $3.5 billion to $3.8 billion, compared with a December forecast of $3.7 billion to $4 billion.

Staples Inc. declined 8.4 percent to $14.66. The world’s largest office products company gave a 2012 forecast that was “lower quality” than analysts expected, Jefferies Group Inc.’s Daniel Binder wrote in a report.

MetroPCS Communications Inc. dropped 6.5 percent to $10.30.

The Texas-based pay-as-you-go wireless carrier was cut to “neutral” from “buy” at UBS AG.

DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. lost 12 percent, the most since July 2005, to $17.26. The maker of the “Kung Fu Panda” films said fourth-quarter profit tumbled 72 percent as DVD sales declined.

Apple rose 1.3 percent to a record $542.44, gaining for a fifth day. Apple investors are anticipating a sales boost from the company’s latest iPad tablet computer, due on March 7.

They’re also banking on a new iPhone coming by the third quarter and the possibility of Apple offering a dividend, its first since 1995, said Howard Ward, a money manager at Gamco Investors Inc. in Rye, New York. Demand for Apple’s products has helped the company increase profit faster than its stock price, making the price-to-earnings ratio more favorable, he said.

“Impressively, its market cap has risen to the $500 billion level as its price-to-earnings multiple has actually contracted,” said Ward, who helps oversee $36 billion in assets. “At 12 times this year’s expectation of earnings, it stands in stark contrast to the experience of Cisco Systems, which sold at over 100 times earnings when it approached the $500 billion level in 2000.”

A measure of homebuilders in S&P indexes climbed 3.6 percent as a weekly survey by International Strategy & Investment Group showed an index of homebuilder activity rose to the highest level since April 2006.

Toll Brothers Inc. jumped 4.6 percent to $23.46. Chief Executive Officer Douglas Yearley Jr. told CNBC yesterday that orders for the spring season have surged 45 percent. PulteGroup Inc. added 6.3 percent to $8.82. Lennar Corp. rose 3.9 percent to $23.38.

BlackRock Inc.’s Laurence D. Fink said savers need to become more aggressive investors as returns on bank accounts and Treasuries shrink and people grow older. The traditional mix of putting 60 percent of assets in stocks and 40 percent in bonds is inadequate in a “new world” characterized by an aging population, a reduction in borrowing and risk-taking by individuals and governments, and a greater role of emerging economies.

“I’ve personally said I would be 100 percent in equities,” Fink, 59, said in prepared remarks today to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. “Most investors need a more diversified portfolio, but virtually every investor has to find ways to achieve better returns than they’ll get in cash or government bonds for the foreseeable future.”

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

 

 

Fear is one of the greatest problems in life.  A mind that is caught in fear lives in confusion, in conflict, and therefore must be violent, distorted and aggressive.

-Krishnamurti, 1895-1986

 

 

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

The first time I see a jogger smile,

I’ll consider it.

-Joan Rivers, 1933-

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

 

Dear Friends,

 

Don’t forget – tomorrow is the last day for RSP contributions that can be used to reduce the tax burden for 2011 income.

 

Tangents:

THE NEW SONG

For some time I thought there was time

and that there would always be time

for what I had a mind to do

and what I could imagine

going back to and finding it

as I had found it the first time

but by this time I  do not know

what I thought when I thought back then

 

there is no time yet it grows less

there is the sound of rain at night

arriving unknown in the leaves

once without before or after

then I hear the thrush waking

at daybreak singing the new song

 

-W.S. Merwin

 

photos of the day

February 28, 2012

A bee collects pollen from an almond blossom in early spring at park in Amman, Jordan.

Ali Jarekji/Reuters

A female Lesser Goldfinch feeds on a pollen cone of a conifer in Santa Clara, Calif.

Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP

 

Market Closes for February 28, 2012:

North American Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	13005.12	+23.61
		+0.18%
S&P 500	1372.18	+4.59
		+0.34%
NASDAQ	2986.76	+20.6
		+0.69%
TSX	12740.47	+40.09
		+0.32%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9722.52	+88.59
		+0.92%
HANG SENG	21568.73	+350.87
		+1.65%
SENSEX	17731.12	+285.37
		+1.64%
FTSE 100	5927.91	+12.36
		+0.21%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond	1.975	2.011
CND. 30 Year Bond	2.594	2.625
U.S. 10 Year Bond	1.9324	1.9273
U.S. 30 Year Bond	3.0641	3.0467

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.99563	0.9989
US $	1.00439	1.0001
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.34008	0.74623
US $	1.34596	0.74296

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1786.70	1773.60
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	106.64	107.76

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Lu Wang and Matt Walcoff

Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks climbed to a five- month high as better-than-expected U.S. consumer confidence data bolstered the outlook for raw-materials producers and Bank of Montreal’s earnings lifted financial shares.

Goldcorp Inc., the second-largest gold producer by market value, advanced 2.9 percent as the metal climbed for the first time in three days. BMO, Canada’s fourth-largest lender, rose 1 percent after profit beat analysts’ estimates, helped by U.S.

consumer banking following its takeover of a Wisconsin lender.

SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. tumbled 21 percent after saying 2011 profit missed its projection and opening a probe into inaccurate documentation of payments by its construction unit.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 40.09 points, or 0.3 percent, to 12,740.47, the highest close since Aug. 31. The benchmark measure has jumped 14 percent from an October low as reports on U.S. housing and the labor market bolstered optimism about growth in Canada’s biggest trading partner.

“It’s giving people a little bit of confidence that the economy will gradually improve and the recent run over the past four months in the stock market was not a fakeout,” Irwin Michael, a money manager at ABC Funds in Toronto, said in a phone interview. His firm oversees C$1 billion ($1 billion).

“With good earnings, more mergers and acquisitions — because we see a lot of that happening — we expect the market to be higher than where it is now at the end of the year.”

The S&P/TSX Materials Index rose for the first time in three days, climbing 1.4 percent. Goldcorp increased 2.9 percent to C$49.77. Teck Resources Ltd., Canada’s largest base-metals and coal producer, gained 1.3 percent to C$40.86 as copper rose to a two-week high. First Majestic Silver Corp., which mines in Mexico, surged 6.4 percent to C$21.68 as silver rallied the most since Jan. 3.

Confidence among U.S. consumers climbed to a 12-month high in February, signaling household spending will help sustain the expansion, according to the Conference Board’s index.

BMO, the first Canadian bank to report quarterly results, gained 1 percent to C$58.56. The lender reported first-quarter earnings that beat the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 4.3 percent, excluding certain items. Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s biggest lender by assets, climbed for a sixth day, increasing 1.1 percent to C$55.62.

SNC-Lavalin plunged 21 percent, the most since at least 1992, to C$38.43. The company said an outside law firm is assisting in the inquiry after C$35 million of fourth-quarter outlays were found to have been tied to “projects to which they did not relate” and had to be logged as expenses.

Thompson Creek Metals Co. tumbled 16 percent, the most since November 2008, to C$7.30. The molybdenum producer said its Mt. Milligan copper and gold project may cost more than it had estimated. Analysts at Credit Suisse Group AG, Deutsche Bank AG and Toronto-Dominion Bank cut their ratings on the stock.

Calfrac Well Services Ltd., an oilfield-services company, surged 9.4 percent, the most since September 2009, to C$30.39 after its fourth-quarter profit, excluding certain items, surpassed all 14 estimates in a Bloomberg survey.

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc., which calls itself the world’s largest industrial auctioneer, decreased 7 percent to

C$23.79 after reporting fourth-quarter sales that trailed the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 5.4 percent.

Petrominerales Ltd., which produces oil and gas in Colombia, had its share-price forecast cut by at least nine analysts, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The stock dropped 7 percent to C$17.72, extending its slump after falling

20 percent yesterday, when the company reported drilling results that trailed analysts’ estimates.

US

By Rita Nazareth

Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to its first close above 13,000 since 2008, as better-than-estimated consumer confidence data and a drop in oil bolstered optimism in the world’s largest economy.

Apple Inc. added 1.8 percent and its market capitalization approached $500 billion as it is said to unveil a new iPad next month. Micron Technology Inc. jumped 3.7 percent after buying Intel Corp.’s stake in two wafer factories as the companies expand their venture. Intel advanced 1.3 percent. Priceline.com Inc. surged 7 percent to the highest level since 1999 as profit beat estimates. The Bloomberg U.S. Airlines Index rallied 1.7 percent as oil fell the most in more than five weeks.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index increased 0.3 percent to

1,372.18 at 4 p.m. New York time, gaining for a fourth day, the longest streak since Jan. 23. The Dow advanced 23.61 points, or

0.2 percent, to 13,005.12. The 30-stock gauge closed above

13,000 after three unsuccessful attempts over the past week.

“13,000 is just a number,” Malcolm Polley, who oversees about $1.1 billion as chief investment officer at Stewart Capital in Indiana, Pennsylvania, said in a telephone interview.

“The U.S. economy is in decent shape. The market is not expensive.”

Today’s gain put the Dow on pace for a fifth straight month of gains, the longest rally since April, amid better-than- estimated economic data. Still, the index is 8.9 percent below its all-time high of 14,164.53 in October 2007. The S&P 500 has rallied 4.6 percent in February, poised for a third monthly gain, the longest stretch in a year. The index trades at about

14.1 times reported earnings, compared with the average since

1954 of 16.4 times, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Stocks rose as the Conference Board’s index increased to the highest level in a year. The euro strengthened versus the dollar before the European Central Bank provides funds tomorrow to support banks. Earlier today, stocks dropped as orders for U.S. durable goods fell in January by the most in three years.

Separate data showed that home prices in 20 U.S. cities declined more than forecast in December.

“I don’t have rose-colored glasses on, but I think the path of least resistance is up,” Richard Weeks, the Vienna, Virginia-based managing director and partner at HighTower’s VWG Wealth Management, said in a telephone interview. His firm oversees more than $20 billion. “The news is generally good.

Short-term, all signs say that risks have been reduced.”

Seven out of 10 groups in the S&P 500 advanced. Technology shares, which comprise 20 percent of the index, added 0.9 percent as a group.

Apple, the world’s largest technology company, gained 1.8 percent to $535.41. The shares advanced for a fourth straight day to a record. The company will hold a product event on March 7 in San Francisco, where it’s said to be releasing the third generation of its best-selling iPad tablet computer.

“We have something you really have to see. And touch,”

Apple said today in an invitation, which features a picture of an iPad screen. The new device will sport a high-definition display, run a faster processor and work with speedier wireless networks, people familiar with the product said last month.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index climbed 1.6 percent as

23 of its 30 stocks increased.

Micron surged 3.7 percent to $8.88. The stock has gained 14 percent over three days. The company will supply Intel products based on a technology called Nand flash memory. The chipmakers will also extend their Nand flash development program, expanding it to include emerging technologies. Intel, the world’s largest chipmaker, added 1.3 percent to $27.24.

Priceline gained 7 percent, the most in the S&P 500, to $632.76. The company has weathered the European debt crisis better than Expedia Inc. and Orbitz Worldwide Inc., and it’s expanding into emerging markets and new businesses.

Ten out of 14 stocks in the Bloomberg U.S. Airlines Index advanced. Crude oil for April delivery fell $2.01 to settle at

$106.55 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the biggest decline since Jan. 20. US Airways Group Inc. increased

5.9 percent to $7.41. United Continental Holdings Inc. added 2.5 percent to $20.58. Energy shares in the S&P 500 lost 0.2 percent as a group.

Office Depot Inc. increased 19 percent, the most since May 2009, to $3.59. The second-largest U.S. office-supply chain posted earnings excluding some items of 3 cents a share in the fourth quarter. Analysts, on average, expected the company to break even, according to a Bloomberg survey.

Domino’s Pizza Inc. soared 16 percent to $38.82. The pizza- delivery chain announced a debt refinancing that may result in a special dividend.

Apollo Group Inc. fell 16 percent, the most in the S&P 500, to $43.04. The for-profit educator cut its operating profit forecast for 2012 to no more than $725 million, below the previous estimate of as much as $750 million.

Other education shares declined. ITT Educational Services Inc. retreated 5.4 percent to $68.29. DeVry Inc. fell 3.8 percent to $35.41.

The Russell 2000 Index of small companies slid 0.4 percent to 823.80. Sykes Enterprises Inc. dropped 17 percent to $14.28.

The operator of call centers forecast full-year earnings of

$1.20 a share at most, below the average analyst estimate of $1.46.

Warren Buffett’s pursuit of bigger acquisitions makes companies from Stanley Black & Decker Inc. to Parker Hannifin Corp. the most attractive takeover targets, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s 81-year-old chairman and chief executive officer said in his annual letter to shareholders on Feb. 25 that he was “on the prowl” for large deals after spending more than $35 billion on companies including Lubrizol Corp. and Burlington Northern Santa Fe in the past two years.

With Berkshire generating $1 billion a month in free cash flow, the world’s most successful investor is eyeing takeovers as near-zero percent interest rates limit returns in fixed- income markets and the Omaha, Nebraska-based company’s cash hoard increased to $37.3 billion.

Stanley Black & Decker, the world’s biggest maker of hand tools, and Parker Hannifin, which controls more than half the market for fluid-powered valves, are among 21 U.S. companies that meet the acquisition criteria in Berkshire’s annual report, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Stanley Black & Decker and Parker Hannifin “seem very plausible acquisition candidates for Buffett,” said Timothy Ghriskey, who oversees $2 billion as chief investment officer of Solaris Group in Bedford Hills, New York. “We would expect him to make a larger deal. He’s a man of his word.”

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

How is this dream to be broken,

how shall we wake up from this dream

that we are little men and women,

and all such things?

-Swami Vivekananda, 1863-1902

As ever,

 

Carolann

Education is not the filling of a

pail, but the lighting of a fire.

-W.B. Yeats, 1865-1939

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

 

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

 

Birthday: Henry W. Longfellow, born February 27^th, 1807.  He finished his last poem, The Bells of San Blas, on March 15^th, 1882.  “Out of the shadows of night

The world rolls into light; it is daybreak everywhere.”

I read this poem on the weekend in a recent edition of The New Yorker:

 

MONEY TIME

 

Supposedly, time is money:

money will buy you time

assuming you have money

 

to spend, as well as time

to wait while your money

grows. However, time

 

spent waiting can be like money

misspent – it’s often time

wasted, even if money

 

is made, a kind of time

not worth spending, so money

isn’t necessarily time.

 

Maybe time is money

if you make with your time

something else that makes money,

 

though most of the time

it’s not your money

you’ve made with your time.

 

And money isn’t even money,

necessarily, in a time

like this, when money

 

loses value and time

is misspent losing money.

And time isn’t even time,

 

necessarily, if it’s lost money

on which you’re wasting time,

nor is money really money

 

if it’s wasted on wasted time.

Still, sometimes, time is money,

but only if you have money and time.

 

-Craig Morgan Teicher

photos of the day

February 27, 2012

A timed exposure shows stars in the sky over the Norwegian village Haglebu as a car passes by.

Leonhard Foeger/Reuters

Meryl Streep, who won Best Actress for ‘The Iron Lady,’ and Jean Dujardin, who won Best Actor for ‘The Artist,’ pose with their Oscars during the 84th Academy Awards in Los Angeles.

Joel Ryan/AP

Market Closes for February 27, 2012:

North American Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	12981.51	-1.44
		-0.01%
S&P 500	1367.59	+1.85
		+0.14%
NASDAQ	2966.16	+2.41
		+0.08%
TSX	12700.38	-25.39
		-0.20%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9633.93	-13.45
		-0.14%
HANG SENG	21217.86	-189.00
		-0.88%
SENSEX	17445.75	-477.82
		-2.67%
FTSE 100	5915.55	-19.58
		-0.33%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond	2.011	2.023
CND. 30 Year Bond	2.625	2.636
U.S. 10 Year Bond	1.9273	1.9757
U.S. 30 Year Bond	3.0467	3.0976

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.99911	0.99775
US $	0.7541	1.00226
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.33800	0.74739
US $	1.33918	0.74672

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1773.60	1773.00
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	107.76	109.70

 

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Matt Walcoff

Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell for a second day as energy companies dropped after the International Monetary Fund said the world economy remains at risk for a slowdown.

Suncor Energy Inc., Canada’s biggest oil and gas producer, decreased 2.2 percent as crude futures retreated for the first time in eight days. Petrominerales Ltd., which produces energy in Colombia, plunged 20 percent after reporting drilling results that Tudor Pickering Holt & Co. called “disappointing.”

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., Canada’s biggest drugmaker, rose 5.6 percent after reporting profit that surpassed the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 25.39 points, or 0.2 percent, to 12,700.38 after IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said the economy is “not out of the danger zone.”

“There is a bit of deja vu,” Ian Nakamoto, director of research at money manager MacDougall MacDougall & MacTier Inc., said in a telephone interview from Toronto. The firm oversees about $4 billion. “We had a very strong market at the beginning of the year last year, and we also had a rise in oil prices. The equity markets fell back. The general sense is that there is going to be a pause. That’s why people are taking money off the table.”

The index rallied 2.2 percent last week as Greek and European officials agreed on a second bailout of the country and oil futures climbed to the highest price since May. Canada’s benchmark stock gauge has advanced 6.2 percent this year after sinking 11 percent in 2011.

Lagarde cited “still fragile financial systems, high public and private debt, and higher world oil prices” as risks to the economy in a statement yesterday.

Oil futures dropped 1.1 percent on the New York Mercantile Exchange after jumping 11 percent in the previous two weeks.

Suncor declined 2.2 percent to C$36.16. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., the country’s second-largest energy company by market value, lost 0.8 percent to C$37.71. Nexen Inc., an oil and gas producer with operations on five continents, slumped 2.9 percent to C$20.56 after John Herrlin, an analyst at Societe Generale SA, said the company is no longer a short-term buy.

Petrominerales tumbled a record 20 percent to C$19.05 after Matthew Portillo, an analyst at Tudor Pickering, cut his rating on the shares to accumulate from buy. Portillo said flow rates at the company’s Tatama-1 well were at most one-third of what he had forecast. An accumulate rating means the shares should be purchased “consistently” at current prices rather than “aggressively” as with a buy rating.

Pan Orient Energy Corp., which operates in Thailand, Indonesia and western Canada, soared 25 percent to C$4.24 after reporting drilling results. The shares have more than doubled this year.

The S&P/TSX Materials Index fell for a second day as the U.S. Dollar Index rebounded after closing at the lowest level since Dec. 1 on Feb. 24.

Iamgold Corp., which mines in West Africa, South America and Quebec, dropped 2.5 percent to C$15.50 after Tony Lesiak, an analyst at Macquarie Group Ltd., cut his rating on the shares to neutral from outperform. A neutral rating means the shares will return within 5 percentage points of their benchmark over the next 12 months. Teck Resources Ltd., Canada’s biggest base- metals and coal producer, declined 0.8 percent to C$40.34.

Guyana Goldfields Inc., which explores for gold in South America, sank 13 percent to C$5.87, the lowest since November 2009, after analysts at Royal Bank, Bank of Montreal and Cormark Securities Inc. cut their ratings on the company. The shares plunged 20 percent Feb. 24 after the feasibility study for its Aurora project was “not as robust as previous guidance had suggested,” Brad Humphrey, an analyst at Raymond James Financial Inc., said in a note to clients.

Trelawney Mining & Exploration Inc., a gold explorer with operations in Ontario, slumped 16 percent, the most since September 2009, to C$2.49. The company released a new resource estimate for its Cote Lake deposit that had a lower average grade than its previous report. Jeff Killeen, an analyst at Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, reduced his 12- to 18-month share-price forecast to C$4.25 from C$6.50.

Batero Gold Corp., which explores in Colombia, plunged 49 percent, the most since it began trading three years ago, to C$1.30. The initial resource estimate for the Batero-Quinchia project was lower than Jeff Wright, an analyst at Global Hunter Securities LLC, had forecast, Wright said in a telephone interview.

Valeant gained 5.6 percent to C$50.71 after its fourth- quarter earnings beat the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 7.8 percent, excluding certain items. The shares have surged 10 percent in the last four days.

Money manager Fiera Sceptre Inc. soared 18 percent, the most since June 2010, to C$8.50 after agreeing to buy National Bank of Canada’s asset-management unit for C$309.5 million ($308.4 million).

US

By Rita Nazareth

Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) — The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose to an almost four-year high, rebounding from earlier losses, on better-than-estimated housing data as financial shares rallied.

A measure of banks advanced the most in the S&P 500 among 24 industries, rallying 1.9 percent. JPMorgan Chase & Co. climbed 2 percent after CLSA Ltd. analyst Mike Mayo said it should consider breaking up and selling businesses. Lennar Corp. and D.R. Horton Inc. rallied more than 1.8 percent to pace gains in homebuilders. Micron Technology Inc., the largest U.S. maker of computer-memory chips, surged 7.7 percent after Japan-based rival Elpida Memory Inc. filed for bankruptcy.

The S&P 500 gained 0.1 percent to 1,367.59 at 4 p.m. New York time, erasing a drop of 0.8 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.44 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 12,981.51. The gauge turned lower at the close of trading after failing to hold above 13,000 for the third session in the past week. The Dow last closed above that level in May 2008.

“The market has been very discomforting for the bears,” Michael Holland, chairman and founder of New York-based Holland & Co., said in a telephone interview. His firm oversees more than $4 billion. “The economy is healing. That’s causing the market to have some resilience.”

The S&P 500 is on pace for a third month of gains, the longest streak in a year, amid better-than-estimated economic and corporate reports. It has risen 4.2 percent this month. The index trades at about 14.1 times reported earnings, compared with the average since 1954 of 16.4 times, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Stocks rose today as more Americans than forecast signed contracts to buy previously owned homes in January, indicating the industry that sparked the last recession is improving.

Benchmark gauges rebounded from earlier losses, which were triggered by concern about Europe’s debt crisis after the Group of 20 nations rebuffed euro area call for help.

“We’re nowhere near the bottom of the European debt crisis,” Keith Wirtz, who oversees $14.6 billion as chief investment officer for Fifth Third Asset Management in Cincinnati, said in a telephone interview. “I keep hoping that the European influence will ebb. The problem is still there. We’ll need to get used to volatility.”

Six out of 10 groups in the S&P 500 rose today as financial, consumer discretionary and technology companies had the biggest gains. The Morgan Stanley Cyclical Index of companies most-dependent on the economy added 0.6 percent.

The KBW Bank Index rallied 1.3 percent as 22 of its 24 stocks advanced.

JPMorgan Chase jumped 2 percent, the most in the Dow, to $39.06. Its parts are worth one-third more than its market value, according to CLSA’s Mayo. While JPMorgan’s stock has outperformed its peers, the New York-based company has trailed the leading firms in its individual businesses, Mayo wrote in a note e-mailed today.

“At what point does the conglomerate discount become so great that it encourages the company to take action?” Mayo wrote. “The stock seems undervalued, but the question is how and when this value gets realized?”

Bank of America Corp. climbed 2 percent to $8.04. The lender and a group of investors that reached an $8.5 billion mortgage-bond settlement with the bank won their bid to remove the case from a federal judge and return it to state court. The U.S. Court of Appeals in Manhattan overturned a lower court ruling and granted a request by Bank of America and the investor group to remand the case to New York state court, where it was first filed, according to a decision today.

A measure of homebuilders in S&P indexes rallied 1.5 percent. Lennar added 2.5 percent to $22.94. D.R. Horton gained 1.9 percent to $14.24.

Lowe’s Cos. rose 0.7 percent to $27.34. The second-largest U.S. home-improvement retailer reported fourth-quarter profit that exceeded analysts’ estimates after warmer weather encouraged outdoor projects.

Whirlpool Corp. advanced 6.7 percent to $76.10. The world’s largest appliance maker will beat analysts’ estimates for 2012 earnings as profit recovers, Cleveland Research said in a note after meeting with the management.

Micron surged 7.7 percent to $8.56. Elpida, the last Japanese maker of dynamic random access memory, or DRAM, chips filed for bankruptcy after semiconductor prices plunged and it failed to win a second government bailout. While there’s too much capacity in the DRAM market, Micron could acquire some of Elpida’s facilities and convert them to produce Nand flash, the chips used in mobile phones and tablets, Kevin Cassidy, a Stifel Nicolaus & Co. analyst, said.

Walt Disney Co. added 0.8 percent to $41.64. The largest U.S. entertainment company by market value was raised to “conviction buy” from “neutral” at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which expects accelerating ad growth at ESPN.

Dendreon Corp. tumbled 21 percent, the most since Nov. 3, to $11.81. The maker of the prostate-cancer drug Provenge reported earnings that missed analyst estimates.

A gauge of U.S. equity volatility is likely to be “contained” below its historical average for the next four months, according to MKM Partners LLC, reducing the potential yields that structured product issuers can offer.

The VIX, as the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index is known, will generally hold between 15 to 20 until mid- June, said Jim Strugger, a derivatives strategist for MKM in Stamford, Connecticut. The VIX measures the cost of using options as protection from losses in the S&P 500.

“We believe the volatility cycle is close to shifting into its sweet spot that will last a couple of months and be characterized by a steady move higher for U.S. equities,” Strugger said in a note today to clients. He based his estimate of the “sweet spot,” which represents a cyclical low in the level of volatility, on historical data from periods that had comparable price swings.

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

You must learn how to be lucid in all your actions;

that is, you must not only be aware of the time, the place, and the circumstances,

in which the action takes place, but also of yourself, the player, of your body

and what is happening at any moment.

It is not only a question of seeing things as they are, but of seeing yourself at the same time,

and the reactions that take place within you.

In other words, you absorb the whole thing within you and you become complete.

-Swami Prajnanpad, 1891-1974

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

The best time to make friends is

before you need them.

-Ethel Barrymore, 1879-1959

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

Queensbury Securities Inc.,

St. Andrew’s Square

Suite 340A, 730 View St.,

Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

 

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

 

Beauty and the Traffic

Photographer Rob Whitworth’s time-lapse video of Ho  Chi Minh City not only provides beautiful views of the Vietnamese metropolis but also reveals the sheer volume of traffic that crisscrosses the city by road and boat each day.  Try to stop your heart from leaping into your mouth when some of those Vespa and motorcycle riders weave through the city center.  Watch it at: http://vimeo.com/32958521

Academy Awards this Sunday!

 

photos of the day

February 24, 2012

A farmer dries cassava while harvesting on a field in Hoa Binh province, outside Hanoi.

Kham/Reuters

A man dressed as the character Spock from the Star Trek TV series and movies waits for tips outside the site of the 84th Academy Awards in Hollywood, California.

Rick Wilking/Reuters

Market Closes for February 24, 2012:

North American Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	12982.95	-1.74
		-0.01%
S&P 500	1365.74	+2.28
		+0.17%
NASDAQ	2963.75	+6.77
		+0.23%
TSX	12725.77	-5.51
		-0.04%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9647.38	+51.81
		+0.54%
HANG SENG	21406.86	+25.87
		+0.12%
SENSEX	17923.57	-154.93
		-0.86%
FTSE 100	5935.13	-2.76
		+0.05%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond	2.023	2.050
CND. 30 Year Bond	2.636	2.643
U.S. 10 Year Bond	1.9757	1.9930
U.S. 30 Year Bond	3.0976	3.1330

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.99775	0.99711
US $	1.00226	1.00290
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.34323	0.74447
US $	1.34626	0.74280

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1773.00	1784.90
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	109.70	108.63

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Katia Porzecanski and Andrew Theen

Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell, paring a second weekly gain, as declines by gold companies offset a rally in energy shares after U.S. consumer sentiment and home sales reports bolstered confidence in the global economy.

Goldcorp Inc., the world’s second-biggest producer of the metal, fell 1.4 percent as demand for a haven eased and gold declined. Suncor Energy Inc., the country’s largest oil and gas producer, increased 1.6 percent as crude rose for a seventh day.

Magna International Inc., North America’s largest auto-parts supplier, rallied 5.4 percent after it said fourth-quarter earnings jumped 42 percent.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index slipped 5.51 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 12,725.77 in Toronto, paring its weekly rally to 2.2 percent.

“Previously there was a concern about a double dip” in the economy, Jennifer Radman, a money manager at Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. in Toronto, said in a telephone interview. The firm oversees about C$1 billion ($1 billion).

“We’ve had good earnings, a lot of good guidance, and we’ve had some economic numbers over the last several months that are showing that seems like it’s no longer the case.”

Canadian materials and energy companies advanced earlier this week as commodities gained after euro-area finance ministers approved 130 billion euros ($175 billion) in aid for Greece. The index has advanced eight of the past nine weeks as improving economic data from the U.S. overshadowed the European debt crisis. Seventy-four percent of Canadian exports went to the U.S. last year, according to Statistics Canada.

Financial shares gained as purchases of new homes in the U.S. exceeded economists’ forecasts in January and a gauge of consumer confidence topped estimates. Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 nations meet tomorrow in Mexico and may discuss committing fresh cash to the International Monetary Fund to defuse the European fiscal crisis.

Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canada’s second-largest lender, gained 0.4 percent to C$79.30. Brookfield Asset Management Inc., the country’s largest real-estate company, gained 1.6 percent to C$31.51.

The S&P/TSX Gold Index fell for the first time this week the metal retreated after its three-day rally. Goldcorp fell 1.4 percent to C$48.64.

“The price of gold has really been a steady riser, and we just haven’t seen much of that carry through in the valuations of gold shares,” Radman said.

Iamgold Corp., which mines in West Africa, South America and Quebec, fell 9.1 percent to C$15.90 after reporting fourth- quarter earnings that missed analysts’ estimates.

Oil climbed for a seventh day, the longest streak of advances since January 2010, as sanctions against Iran made it more difficult for the Persian Gulf nation to sell crude.

Suncor Energy, the country’s largest oil and gas producer, increased 1.6 percent to C$36.97.

Nexen Inc. rose 1.5 percent to C$21.18. The oil and gas producer with operations on five continents said it has begun producing oil from its Usan field off the coast of West Africa.

Enerplus Corp., an oil and gas producer with operations in Canada and the U.S., lost 2.4 percent to C$24.01 after it reported a fourth-quarter loss.

Laramide Resources Ltd., a Canadian uranium-mining company, rose 18 percent to C$1.14 on speculation an election next month in Australia’s Queensland state will lead to the end of a ban on extracting the mineral.

Magna International rallied 5.4 percent to C$47.36 after it said fourth-quarter earnings jumped 42 percent on increased production of cars and light trucks in North America.

US

By Rita Nazareth

Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) — The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index advanced to the highest level since 2008 amid better-than- estimated consumer sentiment and home sales reports.

Salesforce.com Inc., the largest seller of online customer- management software, climbed 9 percent as billings growth beat analysts’ forecasts. American International Group Inc. added 1.5 percent after profit jumped 77 percent. Bank of America Corp.

and Morgan Stanley dropped at least 1.7 percent. FedEx Corp.

retreated 1.9 percent, pacing losses in transportation shares, as oil capped its longest increase since January 2010.

The S&P 500 rose 0.2 percent to 1,365.74 at 4 p.m. New York time, paring a gain of as much as 0.4 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 1.74 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 12,982.95, after rising above 13,000 earlier today.

“We like U.S. equities,” said James McDonald, chief investment strategist at Northern Trust Corp. in Chicago. His firm manages about $665 billion. “That’s a more defensive way to participate in the global economic recovery. Yet the Dow is flirting with 13,000. While it makes no difference from a valuation standpoint, it can cause some people to say: we’ve had a pretty a big run and I’ll take a bit off the table. From a valuation standpoint, the stock market is still attractive.”

The S&P 500 gained as data showed that purchases of new homes in the U.S. exceeded forecasts in January after climbing a month earlier to a one-year high. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan final index of consumer sentiment for February rose to 75.3. Economists projected a reading of 73.

Before today, the S&P 500 twice this week advanced above its highest close since 2008, only to retreat by the end of the trading day. The Dow traded near 13,000 during the week, failing to close above that level. The 30-stock gauge hasn’t closed above 13,000 since May 2008.

Better-than-estimated economic and earnings data put the S&P 500 on pace for a third month of gains, the longest streak in a year. The index rose 4.1 percent in February. Earnings topped analysts’ estimates at 68 percent of the 441 companies in the index that released results since Jan. 9. The S&P 500 trades at 14 times reported earnings, compared with the average since

1954 of 16.4 times, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Technology shares, which comprise 20 percent of the S&P 500, had the biggest gain among 10 industries.

Salesforce.com surged 9 percent to $143.64. The amount Salesforce invoiced its customers grew 57 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, topping the 31 percent predicted by Brent Thill, an analyst at UBS AG in San Francisco. Billings rose 29 percent in the third quarter.

AIG gained 1.5 percent to $28.41. The insurer cited a return to “sustainable operating profit” as it booked a tax benefit that fueled record fourth-quarter earnings. AIG is projecting that it will generate enough profit to use tax assets, tied to prior losses, that can limit future payments to the government.

Sears Holdings Corp. jumped 11 percent, the most in the S&P 500, to $68.31. The shares surged 34 percent in three days. The company yesterday announced plans to raise as much as $770 million by selling 11 store sites and separating some smaller- format businesses.

Interpublic Group of Cos. rose 6.5 percent to $11.62. The New York-based advertising company announced a $300 million share buyback program.

A gauge of banks had the biggest decline in the S&P 500 among 24 industries, slumping 1.2 percent. Regions Financial Corp. lost 1.9 percent to $5.80. Bank of America had the largest drop in the Dow, falling 1.8 percent to $7.88. Morgan Stanley dropped 2.5 percent to $18.49.

The Dow Jones Transportation Average, a proxy for economic growth, slid 0.4 percent, reversing an earlier gain of 0.8 percent. FedEx lost 1.9 percent to $90.24.

Gap Inc. retreated 4 percent to $22.57. The largest U.S.

apparel chain forecast profit this year that was less than some analysts estimated as sales declined at its Old Navy stores.

Sprint Nextel Corp. dropped 2 percent to $2.47. Comcast Corp., the largest U.S. cable company, sued a unit of Sprint alleging infringement of four telecommunications patents.

Stocks are in the midst of a “hope phase” that may be as short-lived as one that occurred a year earlier, according to Albert Edwards, a global strategist at Societe Generale SA.

He compares the S&P 500’s performance since October with its year-ago swings. Last year, the index dropped during the second half of February, rebounded to reach its 2011 high in April, and tumbled in a second-half bout of volatility.

This year’s gains reflect anticipation of sustained U.S.

economic growth and a so-called soft landing for the Chinese economy, according to Edwards, based in London. He also cited optimism that Greece’s second bailout and the European Central Bank’s moves to ease bank financing will help the euro region.

“Hope still beats in the breast of equity investors,” he wrote. “The market will rip out that hope and consume it in front of investors’ eyes.”

Corporate earnings may be a catalyst for the abandonment of hope, the report said. Edwards noted that estimates for S&P 500 companies as a group are dropping for the first time since late 2007, when the U.S. economy was sliding into a recession.

Edwards reiterated in September that the index will fall to 400, a plunge of about 70 percent from yesterday’s close, before the next bull market begins. He saw the yield on 10-year Treasury notes falling to 1.5 percent. Last year’s low was 1.67 percent.

 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

The craving for position, for prestige, for power, to be recognized by society

as being outstanding in some way, is a wish to dominate others, and this wish to dominate

is a form of aggression.  And what is the reason for this aggressiveness?  It is fear isn’t it?

-Krishnamurti, 1895-1986

As ever,

 

Carolann

Write the bad things that are done to you in sand, but write

the good things that happen to you on a piece of marble.

-Arabic Parable

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

 

Dear Friends,

 

Tangents:

Iwo Jima Day, February 23rs, 1945.

Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima, by Joe Rosenthal/ The associated Press.

Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima is a historic photograph  taken on February 23, 1945, by Joe Rosenthal.  It depicts five United States Marines and a U.S. Navy corpsman raising the flag of  the United States atop Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.

The photograph was extremely popular, being reprinted in thousands of publications. Later, it became the only photograph to win the Pulitzer Prize for Photography in the same year as its publication, and came to be regarded in the United States as one of the most significant and recognizable images of the war, and possibly the most reproduced photograph of all time. Of the six men depicted in the picture, three (Franklin Sousley, Harlon Block, and Michael Strank) were killed during the battle; the three survivors (John Bradley, Rene Gagnon, and Ira Hayes) became celebrities upon their identification in the photo. The picture was later used by Felix de Weldon to sculpt the Marine Corps War Memorial, located adjacent to Arlington NationalCemetery just outside Washington, D.C.  –from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

photos of the day

February 23, 2012

The ‘Golden Victoria’ sculpture from the top of Siegessaeule, the Victory column in Berlin is silhouetted against a cloudy sky.

Tobias Schwarz/Reuters

Children cross the Batllava Lake to go to school in Kosovo’s village of Orllan. Students at Orllan are starting their first few days of school after two weeks of disruption due to bad weather. They have to cross the frozen artificial lake of Batllava, which supplies water to the capital Pristina, to reach their school on the other side.

Hazir Reka/Reuters

 

Market Closes for February 23, 2012:

North American Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	12984.69	+46.02
		+0.36
S&P 500	1363.46	+5.80
		+0.43
NASDAQ	2956.98	+23.81
		+0.81%
TSX	12731.28	+30.02
		+0.24%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	9595.57	+41.57
		+0.4%
HANG SENG	21380.99	-168.29
		-0.78%
SENSEX	18078.50	-66.75
		-0.37%
FTSE 100	5937.89	+22.34
		+0.36%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond	2.050	2.052
CND. 30 Year Bond	2.643	2.636
U.S. 10 Year Bond	1.9930	2.0017
U.S. 30 Year Bond	3.1330	3.1379

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.99711	0.99980
US $	1.00290	1.00020
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	0.74987	1.33356
US $	0.74770	1.33743

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1784.90	1770.00
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	108.63	106.01

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Andrew Theen and Katia Porzecanski

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose, extending a five-month high, as bullion producers rallied after Yamana Gold Inc.’s earnings beat forecasts and the metal’s futures climbed.

Yamana, the country’s fourth-largest gold producer by market value, advanced 3.1 percent after the metal rose to a three-month high and executives from Barrick Gold Corp. and Goldcorp Inc. said mining shares are cheap relative to earnings.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., the world’s biggest fertilizer producer, slipped 1.5 percent as wheat declined in Chicago.

The Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index rose 30.02 points, or 0.2 percent, to 12,731.28 in Toronto, the highest since Aug. 31.

“Good times are here again in terms of commodity prices,” Barry Schwartz, portfolio manager with Baskin Financial Services Inc. in Toronto, said in a phone interview. The firm oversees about C$450 million ($451 million). The gains in the stock market have been muted, he said, because investors are still wary after 2008, when they were “sliced and diced” by holding onto commodity stocks.

The index has rallied 2.2 percent this week after Greece won a second bailout, and has gained eight of the past nine weeks as improving U.S. employment, manufacturing and housing data overshadowed the European debt crisis. Materials, oil and gas make up 47 percent of the Canadian market.  Seventy-four percent of Canadian exports went to the U.S. last year, according to Statistics Canada.

Gold rose 0.8 percent to settle at $1,786.30 an ounce. Oil rose 1.5 percent to $107.83, the highest settlement since May.

Canadian commodity stocks don’t fully reflect the gains in the underlying commodities, Schwartz said.

“The stocks are reacting to this as if gold is still at $1,600 and oil is at $90 a barrel,” Schwartz said. “Someone sent the memo but Canadian investors didn’t get it.”

A gauge of materials companies advanced, with 50 of the 74 companies posting gains. Gold rose to a three-month high in New York after the dollar fell against a basket of currencies as a report showed German business confidence rose to the highest level in seven months in February.

Executives of the world’s two largest producers of the metal, Goldcorp and Barrick, said producers of metal are poised to outperform bullion after gold-mining shares fell to their cheapest in at least a decade. Barrick slipped 0.2 percent to C$49.40, while Goldcorp added 0.3 percent to C$49.35.

Great Basin Gold Ltd. gained 5.6 percent to 94 Canadian cents. Yamana Gold rose 3.1 percent to C$17.90. Yamana’s fourth- quarter profit beat the average analyst estimate by 5.9 percent.

An index of energy shares in the S&P/TSX rose for a third day.

Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp. rose 7.8 percent to C$29.44. The Toronto-based oil producer that operates fields in Colombia surged to a six-month high after its 2011 oil and natural-gas reserves gained 52 percent from the year before.

Loblaw Cos., the country’s biggest grocer, led losses among consumer staple companies and fell 5.7 percent to C$35.25 after it forecast profit this year will be down from 2011 due to higher costs for technology.

Potash Corp. fell 1.5 percent to C$46.65 as wheat declined on speculation that rising global inventories will cut demand for grain from the U.S. The stock was cut to underperform from sector perform by National Bank Financial Inc., meaning it is expected to perform worse than competitors.

US

By Rita Nazareth

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to the highest level since May 2008, amid better-than-estimated housing and jobs market reports.

International Business Machines Corp., which comprises 12 percent of the share-price weighted Dow, added 28 points to the index. Procter & Gamble Co. rose 3.1 percent as the largest consumer-products company said it will cut 5,700 jobs.

PulteGroup Inc. and KB Home advanced at least 4.3 percent to pace gains in homebuilders. Sears Holdings Corp. soared 19 percent as it plans to raise as much as $770 million by selling11 store sites and separating some smaller-format businesses.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index increased 0.4 percent to 1,363.46 at 4 p.m. in New York, erasing earlier losses. The benchmark gauge briefly rose above its April 2011 peak of 1,363.61, which was the highest level since June 2008. The Dow gained 46.02 points, or 0.4 percent, to 12,984.69. The Russell 2000 Index of small companies rallied 1.6 percent to 829.23.

“The recovery is starting to pick up speed,” Tom Wirth, who helps manage $1.5 billion as senior investment officer for Chemung Canal Trust Co., in Elmira, New York, said in a phone interview. “There was so much fear about what was happening in Europe that people couldn’t see through all of that.”

Stocks gained as applications for jobless benefits were unchanged in the week ended Feb. 18 at 351,000, the fewest since March 2008. A report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency showed that a gauge of home prices jumped 0.7 percent in December, beating estimates. The euro rose to the strongest level in more than 10 weeks against the dollar as a report showed German business confidence climbed.

Today’s advance extended the S&P 500’s rally in February to 3.9 percent. The index was poised for a third straight month of gains, the longest streak in a year, on higher-than-estimated economic data. Still, it was the second time this week that the S&P 500 failed to hold above its highest close since 2008.

“Sometimes when you’re knocking on the door of a meaningful psychological level you have to knock hard a few times to gain admittance,” David Sowerby, a Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based portfolio manager at Loomis Sayles & Co., which oversees more than $155 billion, said in a phone interview.

“Valuation is compelling. There’s been improvement in the economy. That provides potential for stocks to move higher.”

The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, which measures the cost of using options as insurance against declines in the S&P 500, tumbled 7.6 percent to 16.80, the lowest since July. The Dow Jones Transportation Average added 0.7 percent, following a three-day slump. Nineteen out of 30 stocks in the Dow advanced. IBM jumped 1.9 percent, the second-biggest gain in the Dow, to $197.61.

Procter & Gamble rallied the most in the Dow, rising 3.1 percent to $66.42. The cuts include 1,600 announced in January and will be achieved through attrition and layoffs, Paul Fox, a spokesman, said in an e-mail. The reductions are part of a plan to achieve $10 billion in cost savings by 2016, as detailed today by Chief Executive Officer Bob McDonald and Chief Financial Officer Jon Moeller at a conference in Florida.

A gauge of homebuilders in S&P indexes climbed 2.3 percent.

KB Home added 4.4 percent to $11.75. PulteGroup advanced 4.8 percent to $8.73.

Sears surged 19 percent, the most in the S&P 500, to $61.80. The rights offering to separate the Hometown and Outlet shops and some hardware stores may raise $400 million to $500 million, Hoffman Estates, Illinois-based Sears said today in a statement. The 11 sites will be sold to General Growth Properties for about $270 million, the retailer said.

Vivus Inc. soared 78 percent to $18.73 after the company’s pill Qnexa won the backing of a regulatory panel, moving the drug a step closer to gaining U.S. approval as the first new obesity treatment in 13 years.

Target Corp. jumped 2.9 percent to $54.50. The second- largest U.S. discount retailer posted fourth-quarter earnings that exceeded some analysts’ estimates, helped by discount card initiatives and grocery sales.

MetroPCS Communications Inc. rallied 14 percent to $11.70.

The pay-as-you-go U.S. wireless carrier reported fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates.

Apple Inc. rose 0.7 percent to a record $516.39. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook, speaking today at an annual investor meeting, said Apple was continuing “active discussions” about what to do with its $97.6 billion in cash and investments, saying the cash hoard was “more than we need to run a company.”

Hewlett-Packard Co. dropped the most in the Dow, slumping 6.5 percent to $27.05. The U.S. computer manufacturer’s fiscal second-quarter profit forecast fell short of analysts’ estimates as consumers curtailed personal-computer purchases.

Solar shares fell after Germany, the world’s biggest market for solar power, plans record reductions in subsidies for the industry as part of a program to rein in a boom in installations. First Solar Inc. declined 8 percent to $37.20.

Trina Solar Ltd. tumbled 12 percent to $8.63.

Safeway Inc. declined 7.6 percent to $20.95. The grocer’s fourth-quarter sales excluding fuel at stores open at least one year increased 1.5 percent, trailing the average 2 percent gain expected by analysts.

The rally in U.S. stocks has pushed a trend measure of the S&P 500 to an “extreme” level not seen since 2004, a sign that the advance may be stalling, according to Sundial Capital Research Inc.

The benchmark gauge’s Average Directional Index, which measures the strength of a trend, climbed to 40.7 yesterday. The last time the indicator was higher following an advance, in November 2004, the S&P 500 was stuck in a 93-point range over the next eight months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The trend is “extended,” Jason Goepfert, president of Sundial in Blaine, Minnesota, wrote in a note yesterday.

“Almost every time, by the time the trend becomes this strong, it’s about to become significantly less so.”

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Freedom is a state of mind – not freedom from something.

-Krishnamurti, 1895-1986

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Man is not made for defeat.

-Ernest Hemingway, 1899-1961

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor

Queensbury Securities Inc.,

St. Andrew’s Square

Suite 340A, 730 View St.,

Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7